Day of Remembrance
Hey, everybody! As I wrote in my totally inadequate bio, the 2004 Transgender Day of Remembrance was a galvanizing experience for me, inspiring me to become an active, dues-paying member of INTRAA and in fact inspiring me to become the project manager for the 2005 Day of Remembrance when a volunteer was needed. This year I have had to set aside this project to acommodate a long-term personal goal, not a truly difficult decision to make but bittersweet, and I am writing now in part to inspire others to participate in an event which certainly changed me in many ways.
What follows is a description of the event we created last year for Indianapolis, as I remember it. I certainly remember that it could not have happened without the hard work of many volunteers before and at the event: thank you! And, please forgive me any missing or incorrect details; feel free to respond with your own memories and thoughts about what made it important for you!
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On Saturday, November 19th, 2005, INTRAA hosted the Indianapolis area’s Transgender Day of Remembrance vigil at Central Christian Church in dowtown Indianapolis. As people entered and seated themselves in the church’s Fellowship Hall, a projection screen displayed the names and photos of several people whose names would later be read during the vigil. People mingled, renewing and making acquaintances, delivering their donations of flowers and visiting the tables with information from INTRAA and other allied organizations. People came from around the state, several never having been “out” in this way before.
The event officially began at 4:30 with welcome remarks by pastor Linda McCrae of CCC, followed by the reading of the names and stories collected by the organization “Remembering Our Dead”.* Volunteers took turns reading the names and the circumstances of these people (if known) for a little more than an hour. As each name was read, other volunteers brought forward flowers to represent each life, forming a stunning memorial that eventually covered the white tablecloth about 14” high. Several people in the room wept openly, with many suddenly gasping out loud as particular details stood out even among a long litany of terrible events.
The gorgeous and heart-breaking symbol of flowers remained the center of consciousness through the remainder of the program. The volunteers of Sapphonia and IndyVisible, the chamber groups of the Indy Men’s and Women’s Choruses, provided some beautiful and much-needed rest for the attendees absorbing the vigil experience. After a brief pause, Jackie Nytes came forward as our first of two official speakers: her speech ws very brief, and though she could have easily and logically delivered a political rallying cry (as the final HRO vote was coming up the next week), she chose instead to share her very personal reaction not only to this event, but how it changed her perspective on her own long-time representation of her district. Response was very positive from the audience.
After another interlude provided by Saphhonia and IndyVisible, INTRAA board member Margeaux May was represented by a long-time friend, a fellow congregant at CCC. He read a passionate, enquiring, and very funny speech that Margeaux had written for this event as she was preparing to leave town for surgery. She called on her religious training, spiritual resources, and life experience to pose several intriguing questions, and offer some of her own unique answers to the meaning of our lives as individuals and in community.
The evening ended with a showing of a short public service announcement produced by the Indiana Youth Group, and a slightly longer “Out and About” slide show of individuals and groups from Indiana and around the country, people who exemplify the joy and possibilities of ‘”living their truth.” Private and public, personal and political moments were shared to the music of Israel Kamakawewe’ole. Nearly all of the 40- 60 people who attended lingered long after we were supposed to have cleared out the hall, an affirmation of the importance of this kind of event to a community and its allies.
At this date, final plans have not been made for TDOR 2006; please contact INTRAA to find out how you can help either lay the groundwork or lend support on the day itself. It’s a very moving experience, raising awareness but also cultivating a sense of purpose and community among transfolk, their friends and allies.
* The Transgender Day of Remembrance is an annual event organized by communities across the country to commemorate the names and stories of people who have died because of others’ transphobia, regardless of their actual (self-identified) gender identity or relationships. For the history of this nation-wide event, go to www.rememberingourdead.org., where you’ll learn how it all began and see a record of how other groups have organized a wide variety of programming around this annual vigil.
More than 350 have been collected from around the world since the founding of this event, with data only being available since 1970. As daunting as that number seems, we believe it represents only a fraction of the actual history, and doesn’t include the victims who have died due to the lack of education among emergency responders or those who have may have taken their own lives in despair.
