Wednesday, Nov. 19 the PB Poorman Pride Center hosted its inaugural event Trans Day of Remembrance and Resilience shining a light on the lives lost in the transgender community due to societal violence over the past year.
“The first record of this event was in Boston in 1999, a lot of people in the community lost their lives that year and this event was brought to honor and draw attention to the murders for the community to recognize, come together and bring attention to anti-trans violence,” LGBTQ+ coordinator Sam Blake said.
The Remembrance and Resilience event was a way to provide a space for trans, LGBTQ+ and supporters of the student community to grieve together and serve as a reminder that we are stronger together. Through this event, the campus was invited to experience the loss of a human life through prejudice and grapple with the unfortunate reality that many have to face, serving a greater purpose to commit to the resistance of violence.
“It’s a very grim time in the transgender community, as they have been attacked recently, which hasn’t happened in a long time within history,” Blake said.
Acknowledgement of mental health and safety needs to continue to grow stronger not only in the country, but in schooling. Knowing how to provide a safe space for those who don’t have a prominent voice is especially important in the climate we are facing now.
“We have been illegal for far longer than we have been legal; we need to endure the moment while working towards the goal of changing minds. We have done it before and we will do it again.” Blake said.
The event hosted by the Pride Center started with Blake informing the guests about how trans and colored women face the most violence within the community. Then goes on to explain how 123 pieces of anti-trans legislation have been passed in the United States this year. From threat to conversion therapy being considered medicine to hate being considered freedom of speech and ending their section with information of many murders go unreported or misgendered, closing with lighting another candle on a table for all the names who went undocumented in reporting.
The next section was led by junior Jaelyn Krohn, who is the president of Impact.
“Every day is hard. Every day is living in constant fear,” they said. “Community transcends death… It does not matter how many lives are lost, or anti-legislation gets passed, we still exist… Right now, we are in a space where we can gather and love, despite all the hate around us.”
In the last section of the event, the president of Latinos Unidos talked about how they want to change the systemic anti-transgender ideas present within the Latino community. The event transitioned into a reading of poems and shared the expression of art pieces that were brought into the space.
UW-Whitewater treats the community very well, from providing trans healthcare to creating a safe space in the robust Pride Center in the heart of campus. Though the results on the climate survey score for the LGBTQ+ community are significantly low, there is always room for improvement.
“The focus was to both feel and retain information when we sent out the surveys, as we always did after our events,” Blake said. “One result showed how a student was most likely to stay because of how welcome they felt in trans life and how valued the community became.”
The main goal was to give hope and to help encourage a shift in conversation from the violent lies and the national discourse surrounding those whose voices are either taken from them or muted by hate.
The Pride Center has done many significant events throughout this semester, from painting the sidewalk rainbow to screening the Rocky Horror Picture Show. But this event helps shift the focus into a call for action, not only for the LGBTQ+ community but for helping shape the future generations for a better and healthier equality.
