Media Coverage of Transgender Day of Remembrance Grows, Remains Respectful
November 24, 2008
One of the most important and somber days of the year for gay and transgender communities and our allies occurred last Thursday as communities around the world commemorated Transgender Day of Remembrance.
While these events are primarily a way to memorialize and honor the lives of transgender people, media plays a key role in illuminating transgender experiences. Accurate and fair portrayals of Transgender Day of Remembrance events helps to expand public awareness and understanding of transgender lives.
This year, press coverage of the events grew in both national and local regions. Sadly, this seems to be linked to the recent murders throughout November. Coverage this year was particularly poignant in Tennessee, New York, and Florida where recent deaths shocked and galvanized communities. The recent murders of Duanna Johnson and Lateisha Green, and the recent death of Aimee Wilcoxson brought issues of anti-discrimination laws, proper health care, and community responses to violence into media focus.
One of the many news outlets that overall accurately covered the Day of Remembrance was News-10 in New York. News-10 originally had inaccurately reported on the murder of Lateisha “Teish” Green in Syracuse, however they quickly corrected their reports after outreach from GLAAD and local community organizations. On Friday, the station explored the meaning of Transgender Day of Remembrance vigils, focusing on the local one for Lateisha Green. From the article:
“Many may think that violence against transgender individuals happens in bigger cities. But that, in fact, is not the case. And the recent murder of Teish Cannon brought that to the forefront.”
Reports from Tennessee closely followed Duanna Johnson, often reporting on the pending legal case against the Memphis Police Department and the ongoing instigation into her murder by the FBI. The day before the Transgender Day of Remembrance, Nov 19, MyFOX and MyEyewitness News both reported that one of the officers responsible for her assault, Bridges McRae, had been indicted. National publications such as the New York Times also covered the assault and her death.
Reporters also covered the vigil for Duanna, which occurred on Nov 16. From MyEyewitness News:
“Back at the vigil on the streets of Midtown Memphis, those paying their respects to Duanna Johnson honored her as a woman who became the face of the fight against racism, homophobia and transphobia. They remembered her as a woman who received no justice in life, but whose life and struggle for equality will not be forgotten.”
Other local outlets included Maryland’s The Herald Mail, which focused on job discrimination.
The quarterly magazine ColorLines reported on the day in their blog, RaceWire. The blog, written by ColorLines‘ Managing Editor, focused on the reporter’s personal experience covering the murder of Gwen Araujo in 2002. Gwen was a Latina transgender woman whose case made headlines across the nation, the reporter compared Gwen’s story to the brutal and devastating murder of another Latina woman who was murdered this year, Angie Zapata of Greeley Colo.
Casual Loafing, a weekly alternate newspaper in Fort Lauderdale, Fla covered the day in their blog, Daily Loaf, as well. The blog focused on the murder of Simmie Williams, a Fort Lauderdale resident, who was murdered in February of this year. The reporter highlighted how underreported anti-transgender violence is:
“It’s definitely a problem and one that gets little coverage and even less understanding. One just has to look at the Pinellas County Commission’s decision this year to not cover transgender folks with their revamped Human Rights Ordinance. Or the circus surrounding Susan Stanton.”
Online networks and blogs also observed the day with bloggers from Jezebel, feministe, and feministing all participating in remembering the names of those murdered this year and in providing information on vigils and other events.
The Day of Remembrance was commemorated on many college campuses as well, with reports from newspapers such as Penn State’s The Daily Collegian, Purdue University’s The Exponent, the University of Georgia’s Red and Black, University of Tulsa’s The Collegian, and Towson University’s The Towerlight, reporting on the ways in which transgender lives are remembered on campuses throughout the nation. Vanderbilt University’s InsideVany reported on the campuses’ first-ever Transgender Day of Remembrance.
The University of Minnesota paper MN Daily included a long column on the importance of both remembering the dead, and working to improve the lives of the living:
“For many transgender people, the threat or the fact of physical and psychological violence is a daily reality. The fear and risk that accompany performing a non-normative gender are shaped simultaneously by their experiences of identities. The terrain of work for justice, equity and compassion for people who experience gender violence demands that we uplift and engage in all of these struggles. Thus, the challenge — and the promise — lies in working together, and in creating space to honor the multiple dimensions of each of our identities so that each person might be able to be present, to live in their bodies in their fullness.“
As we reported yesterday, international coverage has also been ongoing as the Transgender Day of Remembrance is commemorated across the globe.
Amanda Morgan – “What Does the Transgender Day of Remembrance Mean to You?”
November 21, 2008
The Transgender Day of Remembrance will be observed this Thursday, Nov 20. To commemorate the day, GLAAD will be blogging about issues relevant to the Day of Remembrance throughout the week.
We asked transgender people and allies to respond to the question “What does the Transgender Day of Remembrance mean to you?” This response is from Amanda Morgan.
Amanda Morgan is a photographer and writer whose work explores identity and relationships. She is particularly interested in issues of race, gender, sexuality, class, you can view her work on her Web site. Amanda is currently a Vaid Fellow for the National Gay & Lesbian TaskForce where she is working on issues of aging, bisexuality, and transgender discrimination in communities of color.
Amanda Morgan
Amanda’s response first appeared on the National Gay & Lesbian TaskForce’s OutSpoken blog. To find out more about the survey on transgender discrimination go here.
Remembrance Into Action
Transgender Day of Remembrance feels especially sad this year, with Duanna Johnson and Latiesha Green, two black trans women, murdered within a week of each other and another trans woman of color I met just a few weeks ago dead from as yet undisclosed causes.
I am often made aware of the vulnerability of our bodies when we are transgender or gender non-conforming and of color, but on this day it feels especially pertinent.
I am lucky – I have made it through my life thus having survived attacks that were not fatal or permanently disabling and having only received intimidation or threats based on my gender identity/sexual orientation. But many are not so lucky, 16 trans people have been murdered thus far this year and out of those 16, 11 are identified as people of color; the other five have not been publicly identified as belonging to any racial group. Ariel Herrera of Amnesty International has noted, “The most vulnerable are transgendered individuals of color. They are the most stigmatized in the community and often targeted by police.”
Despite this seemingly common knowledge, we are extremely lacking in terms of any real statistical analysis when it comes to the widespread discrimination and violence against trans people in this country. And without numbers, advocating for systemic change and better policies and laws to protect trans folks becomes difficult. It’s hard to get people outside the community to pay attention to our voices when our stories remain, from their perspective, merely anecdotal.
This is what motivated the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the National Center for Transgender Equality to partner in launching a survey on the discrimination against transgender and gender nonconforming people. The survey opened in September, shortly before I began my fellowship at the Task Force. When the Policy Institute staff met to discuss what our roles would be, I already knew what I wanted to do. I volunteered to help administer the survey to people in the community without Internet access and to take the lead of people of color outreach in the New York metropolitan area.
The process of proctoring these surveys has been emotional, as I knew it would be. I have met and spoken to trans folks of color who are survivors of violent attacks, harassment and police intimidation, including false charges.
Every week, I hear the voices and stories of a community with few places to turn. Where do you go when someone in your neighborhood is leaving death threats on your door and you feel that the police can’t be counted on to value, let alone protect, your life? Like I said, I am lucky. When I was pulled over by a police officer who read me as male, all I had to put up with was a long series of condescending “young man’s,” as the officer handled me like the ignorant young black male he believed me to be, despite the information on my license. I still wonder how much worse that night could have been if he discovered my gender did not match up in the way he thought it should.
In the midst of so much, it is important to take time to grieve over those we have lost as well as for the rights we are repeatedly denied. But as often as I am reminded of how much we have lost and how much further we still have to go, I am also reminded of the hard work of healing being done by the wonderful trans folks that have invited me to their drop-in centers and support groups.
I am reminded of the bravery of each trans and gender con-conforming person pursuing the richness of a self-actualized life as opposed to one of self-denial. I think of these things and I am encouraged and I only pause for a second because there is too much to do.
If only there was some way to get this survey to every trans or gender nonconforming person in the country so not a single story would ever be lost again. Knowing this is not possible, I am doing everything I can to get the word out to transgender and gender nonconforming folks of color, because right now, in terms of survey results, our voices are the softest.
And yet, the news of murders within our community, and the subsequent media misrepresentation and degradation of said murder victims, maintains a near omnipresent hum. My wish for this year is that we don’t let the headlines have the last word.
Transgender Week of Remembrance: Reflecting Upon Those Lost
November 18, 2008
While last month marked the 10th year of remembrance of Matthew Shepard’s death, November brings another solemn observance in the LGBT community. This Thursday, people across the world will be recognizing the 10th Transgender Day of Remembrance. Here at glaadBLOG, we are reflecting upon the lives tragically lost because of anti-transgender hate crimes this past year.
Statistics from the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Program’s report on anti-LGBT violence in 2007 showed that there was still a great amount of work to be done. The largest increase of anti-LGBT violence in any demographic category was against transgender men. 16% of total anti-LGBT reports of violence were anti-transgender motivated.
But in 2008, high profile murders of transgender people and people targeted for their gender expression reached double digits. There have been 16 transgender people murdered during 2008 in the US. But it is vital to remember that a large number of transgender murders go underreported or misreported and an accurate statistic is impossible to calculate. According to an estimate by the Human Rights Campaign transgender Americans have a one-in-12 chance of being murdered
The transgender people who have lost their lives in the past year range in age, ethnicity and geographic location, but were all victims of senseless, hate-motivated crimes. Here at GLAAD, we have worked closely with many family and friends of victims to help heighten awareness of hate crimes against transgender people across the nation. We ask that you not only reflect upon those we have lost as we approach the Transgender Day of Remembrance, but throughout the entire year, as we strive as a community to put an end to anti-transgender violence.
- Brian McGlothin. Date of Death: December 23, 2007. Brian wore gender non-conforming clothing and lived in Cincinnati, Ohio. Brian was shot in the head by Antonio Williams, who is currently serving a six-year sentence. Very little information was released about Brian or the crime. Brian was 25 years old.
- Patricia Murphy. Date of Death: January 8, 2008. Patricia was a drag performer and an icon in Albuquerque’s LGBT community. She had won the title of Miss New Mexico Gay Rodeo Association in 2008. Patricia was working towards a nursing degree and was the caretaker to an elderly man. She was shot in the head multiple times by Dana Madsen, who was arrested for the murder. Sharon Hardin, who had known Patricia for 12 years, said: “She had a heart of gold.” Patricia was 39 years old.
- Stacy Brown. Date of Death: January 8, 2008. Stacy was a transgender woman living in Baltimore with her mother and sister. She was found shot to death and police have yet to gain any leads on her murder. Very little information was released on Stacy or the crime. She was 30 years old.
- Adolphus Simmons. Date of Death: January 21, 2008. Adolphus wore gender non-conforming clothing and was embraced as a dear friend by his neighbors in the North Carolina apartment building where he lived. Family and friends described Adolphus as “jovial” and “a jokester“. Adolphus had recently begun a career as a hairdresser. He was shot dead while taking the trash out by a 15-year-old male. Adolphus was only 18 years old.
- Ashley Sweeney. Date of Death: February 4, 2008. Ashley was a young transgender woman living in Detroit, Michigan. She died from a fatal shot to the head. Very little information is known about Ashley and the crime. The National Center for Transgender Equality accused the Detroit Police Department of mishandling the case, as the department did not release the pertinent information involved in the case. Her age is unknown.
- Sanesha Stewart. Date of Death: February 10, 2008. Sanesha was a transgender woman from the Bronx, New York. She was stabbed to death by Steve McMillan, who was arrested by police. There was a notable amount of defamatory and sensationalized coverage surrounding Sanesha’s death. She was 25 years old.
- Lawrence King. Date of Death: February 12, 2008. Lawrence was a 15-year-old student who wore gender non-conforming clothes. Lawrence was shot and killed by a classmate. The murder was the most high-profile hate crime case of 2008. For more on Lawrence, you can check back to this previous blog post.
- Simmie Williams. Date of Death: February 22, 2008. Simmie was a gender non-conforming 17-year old from Fort Lauderdale, Florida who was planning on getting a GED and going to culinary school. Simmie was shot and killed by two men.
- Lloyd Nixon. Date of Death: April 16, 2008. Very little is known about Lloyd, who was a 45-year old transgender person. Lloyd was beaten to death with a brick in West Palm Beach, Florida.
- Ebony Whitaker. Date of Death: July 1, 2008. Ebony was a transgender woman living in Memphis, Tennessee. She was found shot to death and the police have yet to arrest any suspects. Ebony was only 20 years old. Much of the coverage, of what little there was, was defamatory.
- Angie Zapata. Date of Death: July 17, 2008. Angie was a young transgender woman living in Greeley, Colorado. She was found murdered in her apartment with severe fractures in her skull, beaten to death. Police arrested Allen Andrade for the hate crime. Angie was only 18 years old. Coverage of the hate crime reached a national level, with articles in The New York Times and on the ABC News website.
- Jaylynn L. Namauu. Date of Death: July 17, 2008. Jaylynn was a 35-year old transgender woman living in Makiki Honolulu, Hawaii. She was stabbed to death by Joel Allen, who has been arrested by police. Local coverage of the case was alarmingly defamatory, calling the murder “not a hate crime.” GLAAD reached out to local reporters who promised to improve future coverage. Very little is known about Jaylynn.
- Ruby Molina. Date of Death: September 21, 2008. Ruby was a transgender woman living in Sacramento. Her body was pulled from the American River. Police originally called “no foul play” on the case, but later described situation as merely “suspicious.” No suspects have been found. Ruby was 22-years old.
- Aimee Wilcoxson. Date of Death: November 3, 2008. Aimee was a transgender woman living in Aurora, Colorado. She was found dead in her home. Police have yet to release details, but have stated that the signs lead to suicide, something that friends and family are not satisfied with. Aimee was described as “a woman who loved to laugh, loved Madonna and who advocated for other transgender woman who, like her, had been diagnosed with HIV.” She was 34 years old.
- Duanna Johnson. Date of Death: November 9, 2008. As we blogged about earlier this week, Duanna was fatally shot in Memphis Tennessee earlier this month. Duanna was a transgender woman who has suffered physical and verbal harassment by the Memphis Police following a faulty arrest. Duanna was planning on moving back to her hometown of Chicago. Police have yet to arrest any suspects. Duanna was 42 years old.
- Lateisha Green. Date of Death: November 14, 2008. Lateisha was a young transgender woman who was fatally shot last Friday in Syracuse, New York. Dwight DeLee was arrested for the hate crime and is being held without bail. Lateisha was only 22-years old.
For more information on the Transgender Day of Remembrance please visit www.transgenderdor.org and www.gender.org/remember.
Remembering Duanna Johnson
November 14, 2008
Duanna JohnsonOn Wednesday, we informed you of the tragic murder of Duanna Johnson. Duanna, a 40 year-old African American transgender woman, was murdered early Monday morning in Memphis, Tennessee.
Duanna had become a symbol of resistance to prejudice and hate crimes. In February of this year, Duanna was picked up by Memphis police officers Bridges McRae and J. Swain. She was pinned down and beaten by the two men in a Memphis police jail after she refused to respond to anti-gay and anti-transgender slurs. The assault was captured on video, which aired on several regional newscasts. In an interview given to FOX 13 Duanna spoke about her experiences.
“As [Officer McRae] was calling me, he said ‘hey he-she, come over here’” Johnson told FOX 13 reporters, “I knew he couldn’t be talking to me because that’s not my name.”
Duanna Johnson received national media attention this past June when she went public about the brutality she suffered at the hands of two Memphis Police Officers. She became “the public face of our community’s campaign against racism, homophobia, and transphobia” according to a statement from the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center.
Tragically, Duanna did not live to see full justice served.
On Monday Nov 10, according to news reports, Duanna was shot “execution style” between Hollywood and Staten Avenue in Memphis, Tenn.
Duanna’s murder has slowly been reported across Tennessee. Local Memphis stations FOX 13, WREG, and Eyewitness News all reported on her murder, as did the newspapers Nashville Scene, Commercial Appeal, and Memphis Flyer.
The Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition (TTPC), the Human Rights Campaign, and the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center have all published press releases detailing their desire to have Duanna’s murder investigated to the fullest extent of the law. GLAAD has been working with media professionals to ensure that coverage of the murder is handled with accuracy and fairness. TTPC also noted that Duanna’s death is the third murder of a transgender person in Memphis in the last three years. All of the victims have been African American women.
Independently, some media outlets have also called upon the state to include gender identity in Tennessee hate crimes laws. The Nashville Scene wrote:
“The Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition is pushing a Hate Crimes Enhancement bill that would add gender identity and expression to the definition [of existing Hate Crimes laws]. We remain cautiously optimistic about what effect, if any, hate crime legislation would have.”
Duanna Johnson took a bold stand against prejudice and violence when she went public with her story. Duanna’s memory is being kept alive by the Stop Police Brutality Memphis coalition that organized in response to her attack. Members are currently lobbying the Memphis city council for sensitivity trainings for police officers.
Media professionals are also assisting in memorializing Duanna by publishing locally concerning her story and her struggle to thrive. Duanna’s lawyers have told news sources that they will continue to “fight for justice” on behalf of Duanna.
Duanna’s murder occurred just days before the Transgender Day of Remembrance. The Day of Remembrance is observed on the 20 of November and honors the lives of transgender people lost to hatred and prejudice. According to the International Transgender Day of Remembrance website, there have been 15 known murders nationally this year.
Hate Crime Victim Duanna Johnson Shot to Death
November 12, 2008
Incredibly sad news. On the night of Sunday, November 9, Duanna Johnson, who you may remember was involved in a police brutality case in Memphis earlier this year, was shot to death over the weekend. Her body was found lying in the street on Saturday night.
Only two local news outlets – the Memphis Flyer and the local ABC/CW affiliate – have picked up the story. Few details have been released, but after a witness reportedly heard gunshots, three people were seen fleeing the crime scene. Investigators have yet to identify any suspects.
Johnson, a transgender woman, garnered media attention earlier this year when she shared her story about being verbally assaulted and brutally beaten by two Memphis police officers in June. A video of the attack was leaked and both police officers were fired from the department.
Johnson was trying to leave Memphis and move back to her hometown of Chicago. She had filed suit against the city for a violation of civil rights.
We’ll keep you posted as more information becomes available.
