Today is the beginning of Transgender Awareness Week, a time to celebrate the transgender and gender nonconforming community, to raise awareness and to honor the memory of those who have lost their lives in acts of transphobic violence around the world.
Despite some progress in recent years, violence and stigma against transgender and gender nonconforming people remains a global reality.
Every year, thousands of our brothers and sisters are forced to flee their homes in search of safety, often experiencing horrifying hate violence, harassment, exclusion and isolation along the way.
As the number of asylum seekers and refugees climbs to the highest level in recorded history, efforts to protect and empower the community are more important than ever.
It’s time to support greater visibility for the community. Below are a few resources we have compiled:
Listen to one of ORAM’s beneficiaries Marjori share her experiences of being transgender and waiting to claim asylum along the U.S.-Mexico border during COVID-19.
Learn more about the day at GLAAD TDOR.
View the Transrespect versus Transphobia Worldwide (TvT) research project.
Read the Human Rights Campaign’s report on violence and discrimination ‘Fatal Violence Against the Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming Community in 2020’.
All transgender and nonconforming individuals must be protected and treated with dignity and respect and we must continue to work to create a more just and safe world for all.
– Steve Roth, ORAM’s Executive Director