The TMM IDAHOT 2015 update reports a total of 1,731 cases of reported killings of trans and gender-diverse people from January 1st 2008 to December 31^st 2014.

While the actual circumstances of the killings often remain unknown due to a lack of investigation and reports, many of the cases documented involve an extreme degree of aggression, including torture and mutilation. Many cases are not investigated properly by the authorities and many have hardly received any public attention at all. The highest absolute numbers have been found in countries where strong trans and gender-diverse people’s movements and/or LGBT organisations do professional monitoring. This correlation points to the unknown number of unreported cases.

The TMM IDAHOT 2015 update reports killings of trans and gender-diverse people between January 2008 and December 2014 in all world regions: 1,356 killings in 23 countries in Central and South America, 155 killings in 16 Asian countries; 112 killings in North America; 94 killings in 14 European countries; 9 killings have been reported in 4 African countries; and 5 killings in 4 countries in Oceania.

While Brazil (689), Mexico (194) and the USA (108) have the highest absolute numbers, accounting for 57% of all reported cases worldwide in the last seven years, the relative numbers show even more worrisome results for some countries with a smaller population. Honduras, for instance, has a rate of 9.32 reported trans killings per million inhabitants, the Dominican Republic a rate of 3.27 and Uruguay a rate of 2.94, while for Brazil the rate is 3.44, for Mexico it is 1.59 and for the USA it is 0.34.

“Our analysis shows the worrisome result of a significant increase in reported murders of trans children and young trans people in recent years”, explains Transgender Europe’s Senior Researcher Carsten Balzer. “In the last seven years, 131 trans and gender-diverse persons under 20 years of age have been reported murdered, accounting for 12% of all reported murders where the age was known. Forty-eight of these 131 victims were under 18. An extremely distressing tendency is the fact that in the last two years five trans people under 14 have been reported murdered”.

Among the 10 murdered minors in 2014 were an 8-year-old trans girl, who was beaten to death on February 18^th 2014 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, by her father, who wanted to teach her to behave like a man, and 14-year-old Vanessa who – after receiving death threats – fled to her grandmother’s house in Angelica, Brazil, where she was found strangled on March 10^th 2014. The largest group of murdered trans and gender-diverse people whose age is known is between 20 and 29 years of age, and it accounts for 44% of the total. This means that more than half of all the reported victims with a known age, i.e. 56%, were under 30 when they were murdered. 

Furthermore the analysis of the TMM data shows that 65% of all murdered trans and gender-diverse people whose profession was known weresex workers. Of those reported victims where the cause of death is known, 44% were shot to death, 23% were stabbed to death and 13% were beaten to death. Of those victims where the location of death has been reported, 38% were murdered in the street and 24% were murdered in their homes.

Click on the below picture to get to and share an infographic summarising the findings:

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More detailed information and analysis including maps and tables can also be found on the TvT website: 

http://www.transrespect-transphobia.org/en_US/tvt-project/tmm-results/idahot-2015.htm

To access the “TRANSRESPECT VERSUS TRANSPHOBIA WORLDWIDE – A Comparative Review of the Human-rights Situation of Gender-variant/Trans People”, which contextualises the TMM data, click here: 

www.transrespect-transphobia.org/uploads/downloads/Publications/TvT_research-report.pdf

In Nepal, actions around the IDAHOT 2014 over various days. Highlights included a press conference announcing the IDAHOT 2014 programme ahead, a rainbow flag-raising and speeches at the British High Commission, and a gala event – all in Kathmandu. The gala event featured dance and music performances, by participants from 5 regions of Nepal, as well as “Catwalk To Freedom” (an activism/theatre piece, focused on Third Gender oppression and liberation). A film screening, speeches, theatre, a legal consultation, and other events were organised throughout the week.

The series of events was also marked by high-level participation, as several dignitaries including representatives from National Human Rights Commission, the Norwegian Embassy, UNAIDS, and Pinky Gurung, BDS’s current President wished courage to all LGBTI communities and expressed their solidarity for IDAHOT.

Significantly, a letter was also sent by the Gay and Lesbian Sexual Minority Network of Nepal, to the Prime Minister of Nepal requesting official recognition of May 17.

Local organisers shared the following report with us, which is now reproduced here in full:

We are so happy and excited to share you the IDAHOT Nepal National Report.

LGBTI people, alongside allies and friends, in Nepal marked/celebrated IDAHOT this year in an extended and elaborated three days of events nationwide.

On the 15th of May Blue Diamond Society organized a “meet the press” event, inviting media representatives at the Reporters Club in Kathmandu for an interaction program with activists. The program very interesting, various LGBTI representatives spoke of LGBTI rights, the need for LGBTI representatives to be included in the Constituent Assembly (CA), and reiterated long-held demands that Nepal’s new constitution ensures human rights for LGBTI people. Activists also asked government to allocate budget to LGBTI community support projects, and ensure equal access to education and equal opportunities for employment.

Press conference announcing IDAHOT 2014 events in Nepal. Courtesy of Blue Diamond Society

At least 7 national TV channels broadcasted the events and various radio and print media covered the news of that meet the press event – the kick-off for the broader IDAHOT events around the country.

On the morning of May 16th, the British High Commission in Kathmandu invited LGBTI representatives from various organizations, raised a rainbow flag on the premises, and DCM Guy Harrison spoke about British government’s commitment to support LGBTI rights. Former CA member and founder of BDS Sunil Babu Pant spoke highlighting the importance of IDAHOT, and thanked British government for their support while asking them to do more to protect LGBTI rights in Nepal.

British High Commission in Kathmandu flying the flag on IDAHOT 2014. Courtesy of Blue Diamond Society

Later in the afternoon, Blue Diamond Society organized a gala event at the National Theater in the center if Kathmandu, inviting various families, communities, media, other civil society groups.

Gala event for IDAHOT 2014 in Nepal. Source: Courtesy of Blue Diamond Society

The event featured cultural dances, usually traditionally performed by metis/third genders (male born TGs),  and the “Catwalk To Freedom” — a ramp show featuring various third gender models, with unique educational structure and concept: First, TG models cat-walked onto the ramp, one by one, as if they were caged, chained, masked, hands and legs tied, hand cuffed, mouth taped symbolically show they were denied mobility and expression, and forced to remain in the closet while facing a lot of violence. One by one, while walking in the ramp, the models broke themselves from the cage, tearing off the chains, pulling the tape off their mouths, breaking of the hand cuffs, etc., and trying to encourage others too.

“Catwalk for Freedom” in Kathmandu, Nepal. IDAHOT 2014. Courtesy of Blue Diamond Society.

“Be Change”, documentary related to Lesbian love, was also screened. Nilu Doma, documentary maker, shared her experience regarding “ Be Change” and importance of love regardless of sexual orientation and gender identity.

LGBTI groups from all 5 development regions of Nepal brought their ethnic dance performances. A musical performances showing very vivid experience of LGBTI facing stigma and discrimination, audience were touched by the performances.

Then a play was staged by Silpi Theater Troupe, portraying how in-laws to-be refuse to marry a girl because they discovered her brother was third gender, then the third gender was excluded from her home by her parents, end up leaving the village. She (the third gender) faced discrimination while traveling by bus to Kathmandu, could not find room to rent, could not find job, ended up working in dance bar with low pay and abusive owner, and joined a college only face bullying from classmates – a fairly typical story of a TG facing discrimination and exclusion in day to day life in Nepal. As Nepal has progressed some legal rights and community empowerment, the TG character was able to find peers and organizations to support her. She is empowered and not just settled in harsh city like Kathmandu but also become compassionate to help others in need. Overall it was a powerful performance with positive messages about support and inclusion and hope for the future.

Sunil Babu Pant gave a inspirational and encouraging speech, asking every one to remain united and work hard. He talked about the unfair comparison many may do out of ignorance between the two completely different kinds of success: one can be easily successful to destroy something in a short time without skills, qualification and hard work, but to be successful to create something beneficial to mankind and build a movement and sustain is very different and need a lot of hands, minds and hearts to work together. Pant also invited a mother, Saru Bisht, to the stage, honored her for her support and fight against all odds to give her two third gender children the citizenship ID cards according to their gender identity and asked all parents to see her as a role model.

Several dignitaries including representatives from National Human Rights Commission, the Norwegian Embassy, UNAIDS, and Pinky Gurung, BDS’s current President wished courage to all LGBTI communities and expressed their solidarity for IDAHOT.

On day 3, BDS held an informal Interaction program among LGBTI members — many new members joined the events, shared their experiences and stories of coming out as well as the ugly, the bad, the OK, the good, and the extra-ordinarily happy  experience of living as an LGBTI person in contemporary Nepali society, followed by food and a dance party.

In 23rd and 24th May, BDS coordinated a consultation with 50+ supreme court lawyers on “the 2007 Supreme Court decision in Pant v. Nepal, the new Constitution, the proposed draft civil and criminal code (the proposed civil and criminal coed is dangerously regressive and needs urgent intervention), LGBTI communities needs with regards to legal counselling/litigation and Nepal Bar Association’s role to safeguard LGBTI rights and legal support to LGBTI people.

Civil code consultation for IDAHOT 2014, Nepal. Courtesy of Blue Diamond Society

After the consultation Nepal Bar association expressed their commitment to support LGBTI cause and offered free legal services to Blue Diamond Society and LGBTI members anywhere in Nepal. They also expressed their concern over the proposed draft civil and criminal code which are unbelievably regressive and suggesting to criminalize sexual identities and behaviors which would render LGBTI people criminals — the NBA said this was “unacceptable”.

Letter to the Government of Nepal, requesting official recognition of May 17

Government of Nepal,
Prime Minister as well as
Minister of Social Welfare council
Mr.Sushil Koirala,

Sub:Requesting to proclaim IDAHOBT Day as a public holiday

Dear Prime Minister,
As Nepal’s interim constitution 2063, in the Section 3 there is fundamental rights of the citizens and in the Section 4 there is responsibility of the state as well as management of the principles of polity.As we, the sexual and gender minorities are also citizens of this country, we have rights to utilize and claim all fundamental as well as human rights. However,we,the sexual and gender minorities, have been suffering from various kinds of discrimination in our home, society, neighbors and even from government itself. To eradicate all types of these discrimination, globally the international organizations and associations like International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) and International Lesbian and Gay Association(ILGA) are standing together and making their local level NGOs and INGOs active to overcome all sorts of discrimination and violence against sexual minority communities and empower them with all human rights and their security.With regards to it,an international committee IDAHO,formed and this committee has been observing International Day Against Homophobia to mark the discrimination and violence against homosexuals, bisexual, transsexual on 17th May every year. Tally this day with our Nepali Bikram Sambat era, we would like to request to you to declare this day public holiday in Nepal too. So that we can make people aware of LGBTTI community and change their opinions about them through this day. We are presenting this letter to you including some problems and issues of this community.

Dear Prime minister, only a few member of our sexual and gender minorities whom can be counted on our finger tips have received citizenship cards in the name of ‘Thirdsex’ or ‘Othersex’ which were issued by Government of Nepal on saying to do so by some non-government organization. However, member of our community are not satisfied with it. They take it as the government itself is discriminating on them by using such offensive words like ‘thirdsex’ ‘thirdgender’ ‘othersex’. Similarly, these are some NGOs in the country which propose a lot of tempting activities in the name of doing welfare of this community just to attract the foreign donor agents. Embezzle the amount that they received as foreign aids, they do nothing towards the welfare of this community. Thus, few people are turning affluent overnight. So the government of Nepal should pay attention and case towards the activities of NGOs and take legal actions against those found guilty. Have a detailed study about this community before issuing citizenship cards to its members because we are neither any thirdgender nor any third-nature dramatical persons, we are naturally normal persons.

We would also like to put forward some of our demands, they are as follows:-
1. Identity cards should be issued based on sex-orientation of an individual.
2. Legalize the Same-Sex marriage.
3. Mention sexual minorities in the new building up constitution.
4. The final verdict of the Supreme Court made in the year 2064(B.S) should be made to follow strictly.
5. Proclaim IDAHOBT Day as a public holiday.

For your information, we would like to tell you something about the International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and transphobia(IDAHOBT). This day aims to co-ordinate international events that raise awareness of LGBTTI rights work worldwide. The date of May 17 was chose to commemorate the decision to remove homosexuality from the international classification of diseases of The World Health Organization (WHO) in 1990.
Requesting you to grant the 17th May as Public Holiday in Nepal. We have prepared this letter representing more then 3 lakh Nepalese sexual minorities. At last, hearing our demands and putting them into practice, give justice to all victimized Nepalese sexual and gender minorities.
Thank you.
Yours,
Binod Lama
Chairperson
Gay and Lesbian Sexual Minority Network Nepal

The International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia 2014 was the reason for various mobilizations in Argentina, across the country, in one of the biggest national movements around May 17, 2014, in the world.

The Argentine Federation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender rights, together with ATTTA presented in the National Senate two initiatives, one for the creation of a National Programme for Comprehensive Health Care for trans communities, and one for the assignment for improved citizenship rights for trans communities. They also presented the agenda for the sexual diversity month across the country and an art exhibition of the internationally successful project, “I’m not a Joke”, by Venezuelan artist Daniel Arzola.

Also in the city of Buenos Aires, the Argentine Homosexual Community (CHA) and the theatre director Alejandro Modarelli presented the premiere of the play “Flowers on the Rust” which addresses the raids on the Argentine LGBT community during the dictatorship (1976 – 1983).

Around IDAHOT 2014, two LGBT rights bills were introduced into the Argentinian Senate.

Sigla organization also coordinated several activities including the third edition of the event, “Tango Against Homophobia” in which they showed dancing actions in more than 60 of the countries in the world which criminalize same sex relationships, and wherein: “You can not dance the tango in freedom.”

In the planetary city LGBTI Association 1969, which relates to the Workers’ Party, held a cultural event which was attended by renowned artists from amongst the LGBT community. On May 16 in front of the Metropolitan Cathedral, the organization MST Diversity performed with a hundred people a kiss-in, against LGBT discrimination by the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. Buenos Aires obelisc was also considered for events on May 17th. Independent activists from the LGBT community organized a “mass hugging” against LGBT criminalization worldwide.

Activists take to the streets in Argentina for IDAHOT 2014 to affirm equality and human rights for all.

The capital of the province of Buenos Aires, La Plata, also held a celebration organized by Franja Morada Diversidad, which organized various events including movie debates, academic debates and a cultural festival in the public square, Islas Malvinas.

The province of Santa Fe, in collaboration with local organizations, declared May 17 as the “Provincial Day Against Discrimination Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity.” In the city of Rosario, the organization Kunst-Unidos Todos AC, performed the opening of the exhibition “My Jauregui” on May 16. The exhibition was performed by nine artists from different disciplines who have dealt creatively with the figure of Carlos Jauregui, a well-known LGBTI activist. Carlos Jauregui was the first president of the CHA since its founding in 1984 until 1987. In 1991 he founded GaysDC, organization he conduct until he passed away in August 1996.

Argentinian activists show solidarity with people living in the 80 countries in the world which criminalise same sex relationships.

Meanwhile, in the northwest of the country, in the province of Misiones, Misiones LGBT Association together with the Equal Opportunities Undersecretary of the Ministry of Human Rights in the Province of Misiones, together with other organizations, raised the rainbow flag for first time in the province of Misiones, on 17 May in the square of Mitre and Uruguay Avenues.

In the north, in Salta Province the second meeting “I am in your eyes” was held in order to promote and share information about LGBTIQ rights. The event was organized by the Municipality of Salta and ATTTA organization.

Street art for the IDAHOT 2014 in Argentina.

In the south, in the city of Bariloche, LGBT organization Colectiva Generando Generxs Bariloche created a mural in one of the neighborhoods of the city to raise awareness of the importance of non-discrimination. In the adjoining province, Neuquen, the organization Mesa Nacional por la Igualdad organized a solidarity collection of clothing and footwear with a cycle of “Cinema for Equality” with the premiere of the film “Stranger on the lake.”

Finally it should be noted that Fundación Huesped and ATTTA held the launch of the campaign Expectations starring trans women to publicize the inequalities to which this population is exposed.

Italy was witness to one of the strongest mobilisations for IDAHOT 2014, in Europe and worldwide. Actions took place in at least 15 cities, and countless topics and communities were the focus of activities around May 17 this year. Progressive voices of faith and individuals joined in prayer, reflection and remembrance in 14 towns and cities, as part of a Global Interfaith Prayer Initiative for IDAHOT 2014. The project ‘ddl405′ launched a video and public call for anti-transphobia and anti-intersexphobia messages to support their campaign. In the north of Italy a local youth organisation brought more than 500 people together to hug a UNESCO monument, amongst many other events.

Global Interfaith Prayer Initiative

For many years now, the Global Interfaith Prayer Initiative, organised from Italy by Gionata, an Italian Project addressing Faith and Homosexuality, and with the support of the European Forum of LGBT Christian Groups, has taken place throughout the period around May 17 in various cities in Italy, and other countries. The focus of the vigil is to commemorate the victims of homophobic violence and discrimination. At the same time, organisers and participants also stand up and speak out against prejudice within the Church. The events were organised by local churches and groups, and took place in the following cities in Italy this year:

May 12: Bologna
May 15: Florence and Palermo
May 16: Padova, Parma, Pistoia and Rome
May 17: Borgo Priolo, Catania, Forano Sabino, Licata, Mantova, Pecara, Pinerolo, Rome, Torino and Trieste
May 18: Rome, Florence, Grosseto, Licata, Milan, Naples, Padova, Rimini and Trapani
May 20: Genova
May 22: Milan

The vigils and commemorations are set to continue in Italy until June 13 and will include Palermo, Livorno and Cremona.

Campaign ddl405

On the occasion of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, the project ddl405 has launched their campaign video for the draft bill DDL405 to put forward to the Parliament. The bill would protect the rights of Italian transgender and intersex people, making a series of changes to the current legal framework.

The claims are to
– stop forced surgery for transgender people to enable them to legally change their name and gender;
– ease off the bureaucracy and relieve the expenses of transition;
– prevent the unconstitutional annulment of marriage in case one of the spouses changes their legal gender;
– end mutilating surgeries on intersex infants.

You can watch the ddl405 campaign video here (launched May 15):

The initiative also invited people to send in their message against Transphobia and Intersexphobia with a picture which was then published on their Facebook page.

Here is a message from Francesca Cellini, a candidate for city council in Bagno a Ripoli:

Francesca Cellini, local Italian politician, leaves her IDAHOT 2014 message.

You can find out more about the campaign on their blog and you can sign the petition here.

Free Expression Zone Bologna!

On May 17, the Cassero LGBT Center in Bologna together with ArciLesbica Bologna and other groups declared a Free Expression Zone on the Piazza dei Celestini in Bologna and later on they also took action in via d’Azeglio and Piazza del Nettuno. The public space was created into a space free from violence and racism, where all identities can be expressed. The space was created together with other civic associations active in the field of LGBT or other social justice questions. The space was occupied with workshops, small events, information tables, and activities from morning to evening.

You can find out more about the Center on their website and on Facebook page.

Casa Delle Donne di Milano

On May 18, the Casa delle Donne di Milano organised a conference with presentations and a discussion on the struggles and violence LBT women face, and on good practice to combat homophobia. They also talked about social constructions and the self-image of teenagers. Eva Schwarzwald addressed gender stereotypes and specifically body images; Helen Ibry, an anthropologist, gave a tour of Europe in twenty minutes with numeric data, legislative proposals and political situations of countries; and Milena Cannavacciuolo spoke about popular culture.

Presentation at Casa Delle Donne di Milano

Hug-In in Vicenza

Organised by the local Youth organisation Arcigay, Vicenza (Northern Italy) hosted a big ‘hug’ against homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. More than 500 people gathered to hug the Palladian Basilica, a UNESCO monument.

Source: Arcigay Vicenza

Flashmob Venice

The Collettivo Stonewall Venezia LGBTIQueer organised a flashmob against Homophobia on Campo Santa Margherita, Venice. The flashmob was aimed at sparking discussion and increasing public awareness, by participants wearing a mask of Putin in the streets while homophobic insults were shouted and stories told about the impact of homophobic violence. To provide more details they also distributed flyers.

Source: Collettivo Stonewall Venezia LGBTIQ

LGBT Training in Torino

On occasion of the IDAHOT 2014, the LGBT Office of the city of Torino carried out training sessions about gender identity and sexual orientation, as part of a national strategy to sensibilize state officials and police forces.

This year is particularly important for our LGBT Office as the City of Torino, as national Secretariat of RE.A.D.Y, the Italian Rainbow Cities, Provinces and Regions, has been assigned by the national Government the meaningful task of translating in concrete actions the objectives and measures of the national LGBT Strategy.

Top level trainings on LGBT topics have already been carried out for the national Police and Arma dei Carabinieri high rank officials in April 2014 while other top level trainings are going to be hold for CEO belonging to the Minister of Labour and Regions.

Locally, the LGBT Office held its first LGBT training in the jail of Ivrea, a city nearby Torino, on gender identity and sexual orientation in detention. The session addressed police officers, psychologists and social assistants of the Penitentiary Police working in the LGBT section of the prison of Ivrea. LGBT transsexual/transgender persons are likely to experience a double suffering in detention: restrictions of freedom, and restrictions in specific areas of prisons. “Our training focused on sexual identity, applicable law, good practice for the management of transsexual/transgender and homosexual persons in jail aiming at their social and professional reintegration in society,” the organisers explained.

Further details about the national strategy are available here.

In Thailand actions for IDAHOT 2014 took place in various cities, involving all kinds of different stakeholders – from UN agencies to schools and young people to trans* and gender non-conforming communities, to artists and community activists. Topics highlighted by local groups included bullying in schools, transphobia, and freedom of expression.

School Rainbow Campaign

As part of a wider effort to wipe out LGBT bullying in schools, a broad coalition of groups – UNAIDS Asia Pacific, UNESCO Asia Pacific, APCOM, Youth Voices Count and Youth Lead – joined forces to organise the ‘School Rainbow’ campaign. The campaign encourages communities to come together to make chalk drawings of rainbows in city spaces, therefore symbolising the importance of diversity, public space use, and messages of inclusivity. The collective art works were mainly produced around school gates and other settings where young people are likely to come together.

Planned, coordinated and executed in partnerships with students, schools, and local communities, the campaign also brought ‘the rainbows into the classroom’ with the support of lessons on sexual diversity, acceptance and the right to education. The chalking rainbows action started on May 12 and went on throughout the week around IDAHOT 2014 in at least 4 schools and universities in Bangkok. To learn more about the School Rainbow campaign, you can see the campaign’s website.

Rainbow chalking at New International School Thailand | Photo by UNAIDS/H. Nhan

Study, event and infographic on LGBTI bullying in Thailand

In addition to the School Rainbow event, UNESCO Asia Pacific also commemorated the Day by releasing the first ever systematic study (and infographic) which documents bullying on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in schools in Thailand. The study formed part of a joint effort of the agency, together with Plan International Thailand and Mahidol University. The study was released as part of another IDAHOT event, “Bullying of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender young people in Thailand: Risks and Realities,” at Thailand Knowledge Park (TK Park), 14 May, 5.30pm-8pm.  Organized by UNESCO Asia Pacific, UNAIDS Asia Pacific and the Embassies of the United States and the Netherlands in Thailand, the event also included a film screening and panel discussion showcasing experiences and perspectives on the realities and risks of discrimination and bullying against LGBTI young people.

Power Rainbow Workshop for Young People

Still on the theme of anti-bullying, Anjaree Foundation held a ‘Power Rainbow Workshop’ for young people (high school and college students) on May 17 at the Bangkok Art and Cultural Centre. The workshop provided a forum for LGBTI students to exchange stories of their school life as well as for educators and students to discuss how to reduce bullying, violence and discriminatory practices within school environments in particular, as well as within Thai society in general.

The Panelists of Power Rainbow workshop

Thai Transgender Alliance Actions

The day before May 17, trans* communities and their allies came together to focus on issues of both transgender rights and freedom of expression, as part of an IDAHOT event organized by Thai Transgender Alliance (Thai TGA). Held in Bangkok Art and Cultural Center from noon to 6.30 PM, a “Where Everyone Can Express Themselves” workshop aimed to shed light on the freedom and rights of Thai transgender individuals in accessing state public services, private sector services and employment.

Participants of the “Where Everyone Can Express Themselves” Workshop

IDAHOT Bangkok Actions

The city of Bangkok also has its own IDAHOT Working group, which is made up of individual LGBTIQ activists, and supported by Rainbow Sky Association Thailand volunteers, Anjaree Foundation, Galaya Club, People’s Empowerment Foundation, and some HIV-focused organisations such as SWING and The Poz.

The working group  conducted an IDAHOT campaign this year which was also focused on the concept of freedom of expression. Comprising a smart, cost-free social media advocacy campaign, which plays on the freedom of expression concept, the working group launched the campaign: “IDAHOT Selfies; This is me! This is us!”. The campaign invited LGBTIQ communities and allies to take selfies and post them with the #SiamIDAHOT hashtag on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. These selfies were collected into one post-campaign image to create a visual tapestry/representation of LGBTIQ identities in Thailand.

The working group also conducted candlelight vigil ceremony on the evening of May 17 to close the IDAHOT celebration in Thailand together with the above organizers.

The Bangkok IDAHOT 2014 Candlelight Vigil

The statement was also co-signed by six major United Nations agencies: OHCHR, UN Women, UNAIDS, UNDP, UNFPA and UNICEF.

The statement condemns sterilization requirements for legal gender recognition. It also states that forced, coerced or otherwise non-consensual sterilization should not be a prerequisite for gender-affirming treatment also.

This move will be roundly welcomed by trans, intersex, LGBTI and human rights advocates, who have long campaigned for sounder attention to human rights standards in drafting legislation.

The statement can be read in full here.

Of the 33 countries in Europe which do allow legal gender recognition for trans communities, 16 require forced sterilization as a prerequisite for such changes.

Further research is needed to give a global figure as to the number of countries in the world today, as a whole, which stipulate similar restrictions.

We regret to report that in the last 12 months alone, there are – at least – a reported 238 lives to be named, remembered and honoured, at TDOR events around the world. That is according to research published by Transgender Europe (TGEU) and the Transrespect versus Transphobia (TvT) research project, this week. Since January 1st, 2008, 1,374 trans murders have been documented worldwide by the project; more than one every two days.

TDOR events are held annually in November, in honour of the murder of Rita Hester, November 28th, 1998. Actions in response to her death included the Remembering Our Dead web project, a San Francisco candlelight vigil in 1999, and with it, the creation of the Transgender Day of Remembrance. Like most anti-transgender murder cases, writes TDOR.org, Rita Hester’s murder, has yet to be solved.

As much as TDOR is a day, very specifically, for trans communities to come together and to pay their respects, it also serves as an awareness-raising moment, in which LGBT communities, human rights supporters, and the public in general are encouraged to reflect on the extent of transphobic violence and hatred worldwide.

Evidence demonstrates, for example, that – in the great majority of countries for which data exists – trans communities are targeted by violence and hatred on the basis of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity, at a significantly higher rate than LGBT communities in general.

In Brazil, for example (where 95 of this year’s 238 homicides were concentrated) trans murders constituted50.5% of all lethal hate crimes against LGBT communities in general in 2011/2012, according to a recent report submitted to the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. As the report also underlines, trans people represent an estimated 10% of overall LGBT populations in Brazil. This means, therefore, that the possibility of an individual trans person being killed in a lethal hate crime in Brazil is, at least, 10 times higher than an LGBT person in general.

Furthermore, as the Brazilian report also stresses – and as recent reports from the United States also underscore – trans people of colour represent particularly vulnerable targets for transphobic violence worldwide. In the few countries where statistics are available, evidence shows that trans people of colour, or from ethnic minority backgrounds, often constitute a majority of homicide cases, as racism, transphobia and machismo combine to produce compound effects. This situation was recently characterised as constituting a ‘state of emergency‘, by the New York City Anti-Violence Project, as figures – from the United States – show ‘73.1% of all anti-LGBTQ homicide victims in 2012 were people of color and 53.8% were transgender women‘.

On the eve of November 20, IDAHO Committee Chairperson, Tamara Adrian, took the opportunity to urge honest reflection, on the part of human rights supporters worldwide:

“I hear very often people stating that they promote and respect equal rights for everyone. But how often these same people forget what ‘free and equal’ means, when it comes to dealing with sexual orientation or gender identity. Homophobia and Transphobia are so interiorized and naturalized that it takes a lot to overcome them, even for people trained in human rights issues.”

IDAHO Committee Executive Director, Joel Bedos, added: “TDOR provides a unique, crucial moment in the year to remember the many Trans persons who have been killed. The figures we get are only the tip of the iceberg, as families often hide the motive of the murders, and police forces and justice authorities often don’t have the right frameworks, nor often the will, to report adequately. And beyond the people murdered stand – incredibly strong and proud – hundreds of thousands of individuals worldwide, who daily face physical and psychological violence, often in the most incredibly cruel forms.

Trans people stand at the forefront of the hate that targets us all, not just LGB people, but also all the straight people who are not totally conforming to the rigid norms of what it ‘takes’ to be a man or a woman in our societies. Let us not be blind: the Trans people we remember today were killed because they represent the most visible form of what we all are. There will never be freedom and pride for us all until Transphobia is wiped out.”

For more information please see:

• International Transgender Day of Remembrance.org: Homepage
• The full list of events, worldwide, compiled by ­Transgender Day of Remembrance.org.
• The list of 238 names for 2012/2013, compiled by TGEU/TvT. Trigger warning: this document includes select case details which some may find disturbing.
• A Facebook event page, for more information, and to express support for the day online, created by Wipe Out Transphobia.
• List of Jewish TDOR events (in the United States).
• A short introductory text to the meaning of TDOR – ’10 Things Every Ally Should Know About TDOR’, by the Trans Faith Insitute.

For editors

• See the Reporting on TDoR tool-kit developed by GLAAD.
• And the report, Doubly Victimized, also by GLAAD.
• Full set of TDOR 2013 documents (research reports), compiled by TvT/TGEU.

You can also follow the day on twitter, and express your support, via the hashtag #TDOR

TGEU’s media release, accompanying the publication of the TDoR 2013 report now follows in full:

Transgender Europe: TDOR Press Release November 13 2013:

Transgender Europe’s Trans Murder Monitoring project reveals 238 killings of trans people in the last 12 months. In total, since January 2008 the murders of 1,374 trans people have been reported

The 15th International Transgender Day of Remembrance is being held on November 20th 2013: Since 1999 the
Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR), on which those trans people who have been victims of homicide are remembered, takes place every November. The TDOR raises public awareness of hate crimes against trans people, provides a space for public mourning and honours the lives of those trans people who might otherwise be forgotten. Started in the USA, the TDOR is now held in many parts of the world. In the past, the TDOR took place in more than 180 cities in more than 20 countries in North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania.

Sadly, this year there are 238 trans persons to be added to the list to be remembered, mourned and honoured.

The Trans Murder Monitoring (TMM) project started in April 2009 and systematically monitors, collects and analyses reports of homicides of trans people worldwide. Updates of the results, which have been presented in July 2009 for the first time, are published on the website of the “Transrespect versus Transphobia Worldwide” project two to three times a year in form of tables, name lists, and maps:
http://www.transrespect-transphobia.org/en_US/tvt-project/tmm-results.htm

Every year in November, Transgender Europe provides a special update of the TMM results for the International Transgender Day of Remembrance so as to assist activists worldwide in raising public awareness of hate crimes against trans people. The TDOR 2013 update has revealed a total of 238 cases of reported killings of trans people from November 20th 2012 to November 1st 2013:
http://www.transrespect-transphobia.org/en_US/tvt-project/tmm-results/tdor-2013.htm

The update shows reports of murdered trans people in 26 countries in the last 12 months, with the majority from Brazil (95), Mexico (40), the USA (16), and Venezuela (15), followed by Honduras (12), Colombia (12), and El Salvador (5). While Brazil, Mexico, and the USA have the highest absolute numbers, the relative numbers show even more worrisome results for some countries with smaller population sizes. Honduras, for instance, has a rate of 1.5 reported trans killings per million inhabitants, for El Salvador the rate is 0.71, while for Brazil the rate is 0.49, for Mexico the rate is 0.36, and for the USA the rate is 0.05. In Asia most reported cases have been found in India (8), and in Europe in Turkey (5) and Italy (5).

Attached to this press release you can find a map, which demonstrates the absolute figures of reports found 
worldwide from November 20th 2012 to November 1st 2013.

Another worrisome result of the TMM TDOR 2013 update is that from January 1st to October 31st 2013, the TMM registered the highest numbers of reported murders of minors since TGEU started the TMM. In the first 10 months of 2013 already 22 trans persons under 20 years have been reported murdered. Half of them have been under 18 years. Among these 11 murdered minors was a 13-year old trans girl, who has been found strangled in the city of Macaiba in Brazil on June 9th 2013, a 14-year old trans girl, who has been found strangled in the city of Ibipora in Brazil on October 15th 2013, and also 16-year-old „Dwayne“ Jones, who was kicked out of her home with 14, and on July 22nd 2013 attended for the first time a party in female clothing in St. James, Jamaica, where she was chased and brutally murdered by party-goers, who formed a mob, when they realized that she was a trans person. In total 108 murders of trans people under 20 years have been reported since 2008: 14 in 2008, 19 in 2009, 13 in 2010, 21 in 2011, 19 in 2012, and 22 in the first ten months of 2013.

The TDOR 2013 update reveals a total of 1,374 reported killings of trans people in 60 countries worldwide 
from January 1st 2008 to October 31st 2013. It is important to note that these cases are those that could be found through Internet research and through cooperation with trans organizations and activists. In most countries, data on murdered trans people are not systematically produced and it is impossible to estimate the numbers of unreported cases.

The alarming figures demonstrate once more that there is an urgent need to react to the violence against trans people and to seek mechanisms to protect trans people. Some international trans activists even started to introduce the term ‘transcide’ to reflect the continuously elevated level of deadly violence against trans people on a global scale and a coalition of NGOs from South America and Europe started the “Stop Trans Genocide” campaign.

Cases have been reported from all major World Regions (Africa, Asia, Central and South America, Europe,North America, and Oceania), evoking an evermore gruesome picture, especially given the very partialknowledge we are able to gain in many places. More detailed information and a map showing the 1,374reported murders of trans people is available at:

http://www.transrespect-transphobia.org/en_US/tvt-project/tmm-results.htm/tdor-2013

Throughout all six world regions, the highest absolute numbers have been found in countries with strong trans movements and trans or LGBT organizations that do a professional monitoring: Brazil (539), Mexico (144), Colombia (76), Venezuela (70) and Honduras (60) in Central and South America, the USA (85) in North America, Turkey (34) and Italy (26) in Europe, and India (30) and the Philippines (29) in Asia.

The close connection between the existence of strong trans movements and professional monitoring on the one hand, and highest absolute numbers of reports, on the other hand, point to a worrisome question: the question of unreported cases. Beside the need for mechanisms to protect trans people, this connection also shows the need for strong trans communities and organizations, which are capable of professional monitoring and reporting of violence against trans people. Furthermore this connection results in the fact, that the figures show only the tip of the iceberg of homicides of trans people on a worldwide scale.

More than 1,000 reported murders of trans people in Central and South America since 2008

The new result update moreover reveals that in the last 70 months:

1,074 killings of trans people have been reported in Central and South America, which account for 78 % of the globally reported murders of trans people since January 2008. In this region, there has been the strongest increase in reports and with 22 countries Central and South America is the best documented region.
117 killings of trans people have been reported in Asia in 16 countries;
87 killings of trans people have been reported in North America;
84 killings of trans people have been reported in Europe in 12 countries;
8 killings of trans people have been reported in Africa in 4 countries;
4 killings of trans people have been reported in Oceania in 4 countries.

Attached to this press release you can find tables showing the details and a map, which demonstrates the 
absolute figures of reports found worldwide since January 2008.

While the documentation of killings of trans people is indispensable for demonstrating the shocking extent of human rights violations committed against trans people on a global scale, there is also a need for in-depth research of various other aspects related to the human rights situation of trans people. Therefore, Transgender Europe developed the Trans Murder Monitoring project into the ‘Transrespect versus Transphobia Worldwide’ research project 
(TvT). TvT is a comparative, ongoing qualitative-quantitative research project, which provides an overview of the human rights situation of trans people in different parts of the world and develops useful data and advocacy tools for international institutions, human rights organizations, the trans movement and the general public. In November 2012 Transgender Europe published the TvT research report “TRANSRESPECT VERSUS TRANSPHOBIA WORLDWIDE – A Comparative Review of the Human-rights Situation of Gender-variant/Trans People”, which discusses and contextualizes the key findings of the TvT project. You can download the research report here:

http://www.transrespect-transphobia.org/uploads/downloads/Publications/TvT_research-report.pdf  

If you have further questions or if you want to support the research project, please contact the TvT research team:

Update: When the statement (and this article) was first published on September 16, it counted just under 100 co-signatories. In less than 24 hours that number jumped to 161, as individuals and organisations from all over the world rapidly joined the call. In just under a week (September 23), that number is now 664 signatories as well as 46 organisations.

A new blog Feminists Fighting Transphobia has also been co-produced and launched along with the statement, in the wake of what organisers describe as ‘a distressing increase in organized transphobic activities by certain groups of feminists this past summer (2013)’. Amongst other examples, they cite the publication of the controversial (August 12) statement Forbidden Discourse: The Silencing of Feminist Critique of “Gender” signed by a number of prominent feminist voices, including Ti-Grace Atkinson, Marge Piercy and Christine Delphy.

Organisers of the blog advise that they hope it – and the statement – will help provide ‘places where trans* people can come and find welcome and support from feminists… We particularly welcome comments regarding ways in which feminists and womanists, both cis and trans*, can organize to demonstrate solidarity with and support and acceptance of trans people.’

Responses, including wishes to sign-on to the statement, can be sent via email to:feministsfightingtransphobia1@gmail.com.

The statement now follows in full:

A Statement of Trans-Inclusive Feminism and Womanism

We, the undersigned trans* and cis scholars, writers, artists, and educators, want to publicly and openly affirm our commitment to a trans*-inclusive feminism and womanism.

There has been a noticeable increase in transphobic feminist activity this summer: the forthcoming book by Sheila Jeffreys from Routledge; the hostile and threatening anonymous letter sent to Dallas Denny after she and Dr. Jamison Green wrote to Routledge regarding their concerns about that book; and the recent widely circulated statement entitled “Forbidden Discourse: The Silencing of Feminist Critique of ‘Gender,’” signed by a number of prominent, and we regret to say, misguided, feminists have been particularly noticeable.  And all this is taking place in the climate of virulent mainstream transphobia that has emerged following the coverage of Chelsea Manning’s trial and subsequent statement regarding her gender identity, and the recent murders of young trans women of color, including Islan Nettles and Domonique Newburn, the latest targets in a long history of violence against trans women of color.  Given these events, it is important that we speak out in support of feminism and womanism that support trans* people.

We are committed to recognizing and respecting the complex construction of sexual/gender identity; to recognizing trans* women as women and including them in all women’s spaces; to recognizing trans* men as men and rejecting accounts of manhood that exclude them; to recognizing the existence of genderqueer, non-binary identifying people and accepting their humanity; to rigorous, thoughtful, nuanced research and analysis of gender, sex, and sexuality that accept trans* people as authorities on their own experiences and understands that the legitimacy of their lives is not up for debate; and to fighting the twin ideologies of transphobia and patriarchy in all their guises.

Transphobic feminism ignores the identification of many trans* and genderqueer people as feminists or womanists and many cis feminists/womanists with their trans* sisters, brothers, friends, and lovers; it is feminism that has too often rejected them, and not the reverse. It ignores the historical pressures placed by the medical profession on trans* people to conform to rigid gender stereotypes in order to be “gifted” the medical aid to which they as human beings are entitled.  By positing “woman” as a coherent, stable identity whose boundaries they are authorized to police, transphobic feminists reject the insights of intersectional analysis, subordinating all other identities to womanhood and all other oppressions to patriarchy.  They are refusing to acknowledge their own power and privilege.

We recognize that transphobic feminists have used violence and threats of violence against trans* people and their partners and we condemn such behavior.  We recognize that transphobic rhetoric has deeply harmful effects on trans* people’s real lives; witness CeCe MacDonald’s imprisonment in a facility for men.  We further recognize the particular harm transphobia causes to trans* people of color when it combines with racism, and the violence it encourages.

When feminists exclude trans* women from women’s shelters, trans* women are left vulnerable to the worst kinds of violent, abusive misogyny, whether in men’s shelters, on the streets, or in abusive homes.  When feminists demand that trans* women be excluded from women’s bathrooms and that genderqueer people choose a binary-marked bathroom, they make participation in the public sphere near-impossible, collaborate with a rigidity of gender identities that feminism has historically fought against, and erect yet another barrier to employment.  When feminists teach transphobia, they drive trans* students away from education and the opportunities it provides.

We also reject the notion that trans* activists’ critiques of transphobic bigotry “silence” anybody.  Criticism is not the same as silencing. We recognize that the recent emphasis on the so-called violent rhetoric and threats that transphobic feminists claim are coming from trans* women online ignores the 40+ – year history of violent and eliminationist rhetoric directed by prominent feminists against trans* women, trans* men, and genderqueer people.  It ignores the deliberate strategy of certain well-known anti-trans* feminists of engaging in gleeful and persistent harassment, baiting, and provocation of trans* people, particularly trans* women, in the hope of inciting angry responses, which are then utilized to paint a false portrayal of trans* women as oppressors and cis feminist women as victims. It ignores the public outing of trans* women that certain transphobic feminists have engaged in regardless of the damage it does to women’s lives and the danger in which it puts them.  And it relies upon the pernicious rhetoric of collective guilt, using any example of such violent rhetoric, no matter the source — and, just as much, the justified anger of any one trans* woman — to condemn all trans* women, and to justify their continued exclusion and the continued denial of their civil rights.

Whether we are cis, trans*, binary-identified, or genderqueer, we will not let feminist or womanist discourse regress or stagnate; we will push forward in our understandings of gender, sex, and sexuality across disciplines.  While we respect the great achievements and hard battles fought by activists in the 1960s and 1970s, we know that those activists are not infallible and that progress cannot stop with them if we hope to remain intellectually honest, moral, and politically effective.  Most importantly, we recognize that theories are not more important than real people’s real lives; we reject any theory of gender, sex, or sexuality that calls on us to sacrifice the needs of any subjugated or marginalized group.  People are more important than theory.

We are committed to making our classrooms, our writing, and our research inclusive of trans* people’s lives.

Signed by:

Individuals

Hailey K. Alves (blogger and transfeminist activist, Brazil)
Luma Andrade  (Federal University of Ceará, Brazil)
Leiliane Assunção (Federal University of the Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil)
Talia Bettcher (California State University, Los Angeles)
Lauren Beukes (novelist)
Lindsay Beyerstein (journalist)
Jamie “Skye” Bianco (New York University)
Hanne Blank (writer and historian)
Kate Bornstein (writer and activist)
danah boyd (Microsoft research and New York University)
Helen Boyd (author and activist)
Sarah Brown (LGBT+ Liberal Democrats)
Christine Burns (equalities consultant, blogger and campaigner)
Liliane Anderson Reis Caldeira (Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil)
Gloria Careaga (UNAM/National Autonomous University of Mexico)
Avedon Carol (activist and writer; Feminists Against Censorship)
Wendy Chapkis (University of Southern Maine) – “I don’t love the punch line ‘people are more important than theory.’  More to the point, it seems to me, is that feminist theories that fail to recognize the lived experiences and revolutionary potential of gender diversity are willfully inadequate.”
Jan Clausen (writer, MFAW faculty, Goddard College)
Darrah Cloud (playwright and screenwriter; Goddard College)
Alyson Cole (Queens College – CUNY)
Arrianna Marie Coleman (writer and activist)
Suzan Cooke (writer and photographer)
Sonia Onufer Correa  (feminist research associate at ABIA, co-chair of Sexuality Policy Watch)
Molly Crabapple (artist and writer)
Elizabeth Dearnley (University College London)
Jaqueline Gomes de Jesus (University of Brasilia, Brazil)
Sady Doyle (writer and blogger)
L. Timmel Duchamp (publisher, Aqueduct Press)
Flavia Dzodan (writer and media maker)
Reni Eddo-Lodge (writer and activist)
Finn Enke (University of Wisconsin, Madison)
Hugh English (Queens College – CUNY)
Jane Fae (writer and activist)
Roderick Ferguson (University of Minnesota)
Jill Filipovic (writer and blogger)
Rose Fox (editor and activist)
Jaclyn Friedman (author, activist, and executive director of Women, Action, & the Media)
Sasha Garwood (University College, London)
Jen Jack Gieseking (Bowdoin College)
Dominique Grisard (CUNY Graduate Center/Columbia University/University of Basel)
Deborah Gussman (Richard Stockton College of New Jersey)
Dr Sally Hines (University of Leeds)
Claire House (International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, Brazil)
Astrid Idlewild (editor, urban historian)
Sarah Hoem Iversen (Bergen University College, Norway)
Sarah Jaffe (columnist)
Roz Kaveney (author and critic)
Zahira Kelly (artist and writer)
Mikki Kendall (writer and occasional feminist)
Natacha Kennedy (Goldsmiths College, University of London)
Alison Kilkenny (journalist and activist)
Matthew Knip (Hunter College – CUNY)
Letícia Lanz (writer and psychoanalyst, Brazil)
April Lidinsky (Indiana University South Bend)
Erika Lin (George Mason University)
Marilee Lindemann (University of Maryland)
Heather Love (University of Pennsylvania)
Jessica W. Luther (writer and activist)
Jen Manion (Connecticut College)
Ruth McClelland-Nugent (Georgia Regents University Augusta)
Melissa McEwan (Editor-in-Chief, Shakesville)
Farah Mendlesohn (Anglia Ruskin University)
Mireille Miller-Young (University of California, Santa Barbara)
Lyndsey Moon (University of Roehampton and University of Warwick)
Surya Monro (University of Huddersfield)
Kenne Mwikya (writer and activist, Nairobi)
Zenita Nicholson (Secretary on the Board of Trustees, Society Against Sexual Orientation Discrimination, Guyana)
Anne Ogborn (frightening sex change)
Sally Outen (performer and activist)
Ruth Pearce (University of Warwick)
Laurie Penny (journalist and activist)
Rosalind Petchesky (Hunter College and the Graduate Center, CUNY, and Sexuality Policy Watch)
Rachel Pollack (writer, Goddard College)
Claire Bond Potter (The New School for Public Engagement)
Nina Power (University of Roehampton)
Marina Riedel (Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil)
Mark Rifkin (University of North Carolina – Greensboro)
Monica Roberts (Transgriot)
Dr. Judy Rohrer (Western Kentucky University)
Diana Salles (independent scholar)
Veronica Schanoes (Queens College – CUNY)
Sarah Schulman, in principle (College of Staten Island – CUNY)
Donald M. Scott (Queens College – CUNY)
Lynne Segal (Birkbeck, University of London)
Julia Serano (author and activist)
Carrie D. Shanafelt (Grinnell College)
Rebekah Sheldon (Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis)
Barbara Simerka (Queens College – CUNY)
Gwendolyn Ann Smith (columnist and Transgender Day of Remembrance founder)
Kari Sperring (K L Maund) (writer and historian)
Zoe Stavri (writer and activist)
Tristan Taormino (Sex Out Loud Radio, New York, NY)
Jemma Tosh (University of Chester)
Viviane V. (Federal University of Bahia, Brazil)
Catherynne M. Valente (author)
Jessica Valenti (author and columnist)
Genevieve Valentine (writer)
Barbra Wangare (S.H.E and Transitioning Africa, Kenya)
Thijs Witty (University of Amsterdam, Netherlands)

Groups:

Bishkek Feminist Collective SQ (Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia)
House of Najafgarh (Najafgarh, India)
House of Kola Bhagan (Kolkatta, India)
Transgender Nation San Francisco

For more information:

• Feminists Fighting Transphobia: Trans-INCLUSIVE Feminism