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Resolution Observes Transgender Day of Remembrance in Ferndale

Co-founder of Transgender Detroit Michelle Fox-Phillips says Transgender Day of Remembrance is "the most important transgender event of the year."

Rita Hester, an African American transgender woman, was stabbed to death in her apartment in Allston, Mass. on Nov. 28, 1998. An outpour of community grief and support lead to a candlelight vigil taking place just days after.

Shortly after the vigil, Gwendolyn Ann Smith, a transgender activist, founded the Transgender Day of Remembrance, a day to memorialize those who fall victim to transphobia.

Ferndale City Council, as introduced by Ferndale Mayor Dave Coulter, proclaimed at its Oct. 10 meeting a resolution that the city of Ferndale observe this day on Nov. 20.

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Transphobia is the hate or fear of gender variant people, which is similar to homophobia. Unlike homophobic acts, however, violent crimes against transgendered men and women are not considered hate crimes in many states. The Transgender Day of Remembrance is a response to the discriminatory actions without proper judicial ramifications.

Between January 2011 and May 2011, 55 transgender-related murders had been registered in 19 countries, according to TransRespect Versus Transphobia, a worldwide research project that examines the human rights situation of transgender persons throughout the world. Three of these murders occurred in the United States, a decrease compared to previous years.

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“Transgender Day of Remembrance is very important because it’s the day to remember transgendered people who were killed for being transgender,” said Rachel Crandall, co-founder and executive director of Transgender Michigan. “It’s my way of thanking those who have lost their lives and paved the way for the transgender men and women who follow after them.”

Transgender Michigan is an avocation, educational and support group for the transgendered community in Michigan.

All metropolitan Detroit residents are encouraged to attend a Transgender Day of Remembrance event on Nov. 18 at 7 p.m. at the Central United Methodist Church in downtown Detroit, next to Comerica Park. There will be an art show, featuring local artists and also a variety of speakers, including Sylvia Guerrero. Guerrero is the mother of Gwen Araujo, a transgender teen who was raped and murdered by four men in Newark, Calif. in October 2002.

“I don’t know how to explain it,” said Michelle Fox-Phillips, co-founder of Transgender Detroit, an organization that advocates for Transgender issues in the metro Detroit area, when asked what the Transgender Day of Remembrance means to her. “It’s the most important transgender event of the year. All these victims need to get recognition in some way. The press ignores them, the police ignore them.”

Fox-Phillips will serve as mistress of ceremony at the Central Methodist Church event along with Crandall.

Correction: A previous version of this story listed the wrong day for the event. The event at the Central United Methodist Church in Detroit takes place on Nov. 18 at 7 p.m.

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