Day of remembrance honours transgender lives lost

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This article was published 21/11/2023 (1044 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

An emotional day of remembrance was observed in Brandon on Monday in honour of transgender people who lost their lives just for being themselves, says Aly Wowchuk, the chair of Brandon Pride.

The International Transgender Day of Remembrance has been commemorated worldwide on Nov. 20 for the past 24 years. This is Brandon’s 15th year to formally remember those affected by anti-trans sentiments, discrimination, and violence, said Wowchuk.

“Violence continues to happen to our trans and gender-diverse community members solely for being their authentic selves, whether it’s to suicide, violence or murder,” Wowchuk said.

Monday’s noon-hour memorial service at Knox United Church included a smudging ceremony as well as a group of volunteers who read the names of transgender people from across the globe who lost their lives from Oct. 1, 2022 to Sept. 30, 2023.

“We read out more than 300 names this year, and it’s the unknown names that really get you, and there was a lot of them,” said Wowchuk.

“The reading of the names for Trans Day of Remembrance is so important and necessary because we need to keep active and pay attention and make sure that no more names are added to that list.”

Wendy Friesen is a Brandon Pride member at large, and was introduced at the memorial service as a poet and a positive voice in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community for activism and change.

“I’d like to thank the public for acknowledging our day. And we’d like to continue to have them do so and have them please join us in love and inclusivity no matter where we are in the community, because we are everywhere,” Friesen said.

“We’re volunteers, we’re workers, and we hope to find allies too because we could really use them on a day like today. And in these trying times, it could save lives.”

Friesen added that the 391 names are most likely underrepresented, “as many hate crimes are unaccounted for,” and that the tragedy is that each year the list grows longer.

“We’re not there, yet,” Friesen said. “But we are educating more and more people all the time, we’re seeing more and more people coming to these events.

“It just shows that we’re actually having a positive effect on people, and that’s the whole point. The more people we have on our side and in our corner, the safer we’ll be, and the more informed people will be. And hopefully, it’ll spread.”

There were more than 50 people in the pews at Knox United Church for the memorial, including two Brandon Police Service officers in uniform as well as Randy Lewis, the BPS acting chief.

Lewis said they make an effort to attend these events and are supportive of the transgender community in Brandon.

“Society itself has changed, and to be progressive, we have to change with society and we have to support those in our communities. And we have various different groups within our community, and we support all. And we do feel that Brandon is a very inclusive community, and we’re proud of that,” Lewis said.

It was important for Coun. Shaun Cameron (Ward 4) to attend the memorial service, he said, as a show of solidarity.

“This day is about memory and about the calls to action that come as a result of that, so I just thought it was an important opportunity to come out and share in this community and ensure that we’re supporting them,” Cameron said.

While speaking from the podium, Friesen called attention to the NDP’s “inclusive and diverse government, which has eight openly queer-identifying cabinet members, one of which is named Logan Oxenham, who is openly transgender,” said Friesen.

In downtown Winnipeg on Monday, the Manitoba government raised the transgender flag in Memorial Park, situated opposite the Manitoba Legislative Building.

Nahanni Fontaine, minister responsible for gender equity, said it was a day to bring attention to the continued discrimination and violence faced by the transgender community.

“Our government will always stand in support of 2SLGBTQI+ Manitobans and against any form of discrimination or intimidation that puts these communities at risk,” Fontaine said in a news release.

Uzoma Asagwara, the province’s minister responsible for health, seniors and long-term care, is openly non-binary, and goes by they/them pronouns.

They added that the day of remembrance is from community, for community.

“We want community to know that our government supports and upholds the life-saving work being done by so many trans, two-spirit and gender-diverse Manitobans working tirelessly to make things better for the next generation,” Asagwara stated in a news release.

In Brandon, the Trans Day of Remembrance was co-organized by Brandon Pride, Knox United Church, Brandon and Area Pflag and the Sexuality Education Resource Centre’s Brandon location.

The day began with the memorial service and ended with a candlelight vigil outside the church.

Brandon has a fierce and collective heart, Friesen told the church crowd, referring to the two new trustees recently elected to the Brandon School Division board, who ran on platforms of inclusivity.

“Our little town of Brandon is setting a fine example with our huge community spirit. Our province, too, is setting the tone Canada-wide. There is no room for hate in Manitoba.”

» mmcdougall@brandonsun.com

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