I get asked this question a lot: “Will you be attending TDoR this year?” I get asked if I’m going to march, or if I want to attend a service or vigil.
My answer is, “absolutely not.”
As a transwoman, I’m all too familiar with the culture of fear. I transitioned by hook & by crook, borderline homeless or totally homeless, squatting, sometimes putting hormones over food & shelter. I’ve been stalked, attacked, beaten, fired for being trans, discriminated against at work, watched my friends get beaten nearly to death in front of me, and am a survivor of abuse & rape.
I hate what TDoR has come to represent: a queer ‘holiday’ for embracing the narrative of fear; fear of violence, fear of death, self-stigmatization. The co-opting of POC trans women of a very-particular-background’s experiences as those of the ENTIRE trans community, regardless of race, class, or whatever. It’s a day to remind us all why we need to be afraid all the time and I think it’s a bunch of bullshit.
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