On Transgender Day of Remembrance, We Should Focus on Resilience Over Mourning

On November 20, the LGBTQ community observes Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR)—which was started in 1999 by trans activist Gwendolyn Smith—to mourn murdered trans people, particularly trans women of color who are killed at an alarmingly high rate. The day is commonly marked by holding a candlelight vigil alongside a reading of the names of the trans people known to have been murdered in the past year (22 individuals in 2018 so far). But is a day of mourning and remembrance what the transgender community most needs? In order to center the strength and hope of the trans community, some have begun appending more hopeful words beginning with R—words like resistance or resilience—to the day.