This is my first Trans Day of Remembrance since I’ve come out. It is horrible that we need a day like this at all and it seems like it will only get worse in the near term.

I want to remember all of those who came before me. I couldn’t be who I am if they hadn’t led their lives proudly and outwardly so that I could see them and read about them. They died or were murdered for simply living their truth. They weren’t hurting anyone or taking anything away from anyone else. Their deaths diminish us all.

But what doesn’t diminish is us. They can kill us, or lead us into death, but they cannot squelch or deny our existence. We were here since the beginning of humanity, we’ve been in the recorded history since history started being recorded, and we will be here long after the hateful rhetoric and those who push it are reduced to ash and blown to the four corners of the earth.

🩷 🏳️‍⚧️ 🌹