Trans Day of Remembrance flag raising
16 November 2023
Messages of solidarity and love for all have been shared by staff and student representatives at the University ahead of Transgender Day of Remembrance and Transgender Awareness Week (13-19 November).
All members of our community are invited to a flag-raising event on Monday 20 November from 12:15-12:45 at the flag pole between Whiteknights House and the Library on Whiteknights campus to mark Transgender Day of Remembrance.
The event will feature speeches and comments by Milan Evans and Reading SU Trans Students’ Officer; Gabe James, Reading SU Inclusion and Communities Officer; and Dr Allán Laville, Dean for Diversity and Inclusion. Also in attendance will be a University Executive Board member; and Tahlia-Rose Virdee, LGBTQIA+ Staff Network Co-Chair.
The names of some of the transgender people whose lives have been taken in acts of violence will also be read.
Transgender Day of Remembrance was started in 1999 by transgender advocate Gwendolyn Ann Smith as a vigil to honour the memory of Rita Hester, a transgender woman who was killed in 1998.
‘Equality, dignity and love for all’
Dr Ruvi Ziegler, Co-Chair of the LGBTQIA+ Staff Network, said: “At a time of a rise in transphobic discourse in the UK – with the ONS reporting in October a 186% increase in hate crimes on trans grounds in the last five years – it is vitally important both that we remember all those who have died to violence, abuse and harassment, and that we press on all members of our societies the simple but powerful message: trans rights are human rights.”
Gabe James, Inclusion & Communities Officer at Reading Students’ Union, said: “November 20th is a day to remember those taken from us through hate, violence, abuse, harassment, and suicide. We remember them so that their deaths are not forgotten, their existence a constant reminder of the ongoing fight, a battle that will not be over until there is no more like them.
“There is strength in solidarity, and we come together to say no more. No more martyrs, no more deaths, no more discrimination.
“Together, we honour the lives lost, forging a path toward acceptance, love, and understanding. In our unity, we discover strength; in our remembrance, we craft a brighter future, abundant with equality, dignity, and love for all.”
Allyship training
Colleagues can also attend a Introducing Allyship and the LGBT+ Ally Staff Network on UoRLearn on Thursday 23 November.
The live training session focuses on exploring what allyship is within an LGBTQIA+ context and what it means to enact allyship.