Transgender Day of Remembrance

by Guest Blogger on 11.20.2010

http://www.feministe.us/blog/archives/2010/11/20/tdor/

This is a guest post by C. L. Minou. C. L. Minou has written on trans and feminist issues for the Guardian's Comment Is Free, Change.org, and Tiger Beatdown. She blogs at The Second Awakening.

I don't remember when I first heard of the Trans Day of Remembrance. It must have been at least five or six years ago, when I was just beginning to connect the private tortures of my transness to larger societal concerns. I can't, to be honest, remember very well my reaction to it. Probably something along the lines of "that's a good idea."

I mention this not to give you insight into the Banal Morality of C. L. Minou, but because it seems that nowadays some trans folks are turning against TDOR. Not just the various observances of it, but against the entire concept of having a day to remember the murdered trans people of the previous year. "It's depressing," say some. "Where is the positive day?" say others. "Why do we only talk about the depressing deaths, when trans people have accomplished so much?"