…did you know that at least 350 trans people were murdered worldwide in 2020? In the USA it was the deadliest year on record for the trans community and 2021 is already looking even worse.
Prince Philip’s death is of course sad for his family, friends and fans. At least he had an exceptionally long, privileged life, dying peacefully of natural causes by all accounts. 99 years. That’s 34,650 trans murders at our current rate. Still, it’s understandable that the passing of a high profile person takes priority over other lives lost or taken when it comes to media coverage and public mourning. Famous people are newsworthy. They hold symbolic meanings to many of us and form part of the fabric that makes up our own identities.
There’s nothing wrong with paying tribute to someone in the public eye, or expressing any sadness you’re feeling in relation to their death, but we think it’s important to have perspective. And after two days of non-stop media coverage — including several hours of identical, simultaneous reporting across both of the main BBC TV channels — we’re ready to move on to talk about actual tragedies. Like the way our trans fellow humans are treated.
Trans lives matter too
Discrimination and violence against trans people are on the rise, while respectful, supportive and inclusive trans visibility is sparse in mainstream media. In the USA, news networks discussed trans violence for a total of just 54 minutes in 2020. Here in the UK trans rights are being erased, with much of the media coverage and debate dominated by anti-trans rhetoric (often dressed up as feminism) — painting trans women as a threat to other women and pitching vulnerable groups against each other.
The 350 recorded murders of trans and gender-diverse people between October 2019 and September 2020 represents a 6% increase in killings, compared with the previous 12-month period. Trans people in England and Wales are twice as likely to be victims of crime as cis individuals, while hate crime against trans people in Scotland doubled between 2014 and 2020.
How you can help
Clearly, this blog post isn’t going to get mainstream media advocating for trans rights, inclusion, equality and protection. But if you’re reading this and want to find out what you can do to be a better trans ally, we’ve pulled together some useful links below.
These include listings of trans and LGBTQ+ organisations that you can get more information from, or choose to support, as well as various listings of resources for trans people, their families, allies, professionals and the media. Hope you find some of this helpful!
Trans support organisations
- All About Trans’ list of trans support organisations
- Stonewall’s list of support organisations for queer, trans and intersex people of colour (QTIPOC)
wearecivildisobedience.com 