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A Resolution recognizing November 20, 2022 as Transgender Day of Remembrance in Nashville and Davidson County, Tennessee.
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WHEREAS, Transgender Day of Remembrance is an annual observance on November 20 that honors the memory of transgender people around the world whose lives have been lost to anti-transgender violence; and
WHEREAS, Transgender Day of Remembrance was established in 1999 by transgender advocate Gwendolyn Ann Smith in remembrance of Rita Hester, a transgender woman who was killed in 1998 in Allston, Massachusetts; and
WHEREAS, Transgender Day of Remembrance has been observed in over 185 cities throughout more than 20 countries; and
WHEREAS, the annual event provides a forum for transgender communities and allies to raise awareness of the threat of violence faced by gender variant people and the persistence of prejudice felt by the transgender community; and
WHEREAS, many communities organize events and activities to create and promote visibility of anti-transgender violence to stakeholders such as police, the media, and elected officials; and
WHEREAS, the Metropolitan Council recognizes that transgender members of our society are disproportionately affected by hate crimes and violence, and experience myriad challenges in their daily lives, including discrimination, disproportionately high levels of unemployment, and limited access to health care; and
WHEREAS, in 2019 the American Medical Association declared violence against the transgender community to be an epidemic; and
WHEREAS, the Human Rights Campaign reports that in 2022, there have been at least 31 transgender or gender nonconforming people fatally shot or killed by other violent means in the United States; and
WHEREAS, at least 74% of known victims of anti-transgender violence in 2017-2018 were misgendered in initial police or media reports surrounding their deaths; and
WHEREAS, the majority of lives taken through violence were those of Black and Latina transgender wome...
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