What is Transgender Awareness Month?

Every November, we honor the lives, histories, and futures of transgender people. We tell our stories, we mourn our losses, and we keep building power together.

It Started November 28, 1998 With The Tragic Loss of Rita Hester.

Rita Hester, a vivacious, bold, loving Black transgender woman from Hartford Connecticut was found stabbed at least 20 times in her own apartment in Allston, Boston in a case that remains unsolved to this day. Her murder triggered an outpouring of grief and anger from the Boston trans/queer community. In 1999, activist Gwendolyn Ann Smith organized the first iteration of what would become the Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDoR) in Rita’s memory and in memory of all transgender people we have lost to violence.

Dates to Remember

  • November 13th–19th: Transgender Awareness Week
  • November 20: Transgender Day or Remembrance (TDoR)
  • November 13th: Transgender Flag Raising at Salt Lake City Hall
  • October 16th: International Pronouns Day

Hundreds of Transgender and Gender Diverse People Lose Their Lives Each Year to Anti-Transgender Violence

94%

of reported victims are trans women with most of those women being Black or Brown people of color.

350

transgender and gender diverse people were murdered in the 12 months between Nov 20, 2023 and Nov 20, 2024.

5000+

lives have been cut short by anti-transgender violence since tracking began in 2008.
  • Remembering Rita Hester. Hester was born on November 30 1963, in Hartford, CT. According to her younger sister Diana, Rita didn't have a "coming out" moment as her personality and mannerisms, even from an early age, were such that she was naturally accepted by her family.

    • Rita was deeply loved. Her mother, her sister and her friends all expressed it. Her nephew said “you could feel when she walked in” to a room. Even with the weight of identity and stigma, she embodied joy in her spirit, flair, and entire being.

    She didn’t just exist in niche queer spaces either. Friends described her as the only link between the city’s queer bars and the incredibly hetero nightlife uptown. She was fearless.

    The celebration of Transgender Awareness Month, and the Transgender Day of Remembrance isn’t just in telling the story of how Rita died. It’s in sharing the story of who she was, what she loved, and how she lived.

    Remembering Rita Hester and the thousands upon thousands of other murdered trans people is a daily struggle. A balance between remembering lives full of joy, and the overwhelming grief we experience as those who still live try to hold on to every name, and every story we possibly can.

    Trans Awareness Week Events

    Come spend time with us November 13-19th with events put on by SLC Pride, Project Rainbow, and the Utah Trans+ Coalition.

    Join Our Coalition

    We are building a diverse alliance of individuals and organizations who are ready to support Utah’s transgender and gender-diverse community through education, collaboration, resource sharing, direct action and mutual aid. Help us make sure that our current and future transgender loved ones experience the freedom and safety that all humans deserve.

    Get Involved!