Celebrating Transgender Day of Visibility
Written by CJ Michalec
At the end of March, Arches will join our community around the world to celebrate Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV). While it cannot go unmentioned that TDOV was born after Transgender Day of Remembrance in the historical timeline (a day we spend honoring the lost lives of transgender people who were targeted victims), it is also important to acknowledge the focus of TDOV: a day to celebrate the living, to gather, to spark hope.
In 2009, TDOV began after a trans activist in Michigan recognized the need for balance. There is so much validity in our grief in response to the continued ignorance and hate-filled, targeted efforts against us, both individually and collectively - and, we deserve to celebrate being trans while we are alive, too. We come from a long line of dreamers and resistors, and just as we reap many of the benefits of their legacies of courage, we carry it onward with an exponential collective.
So, how do we courageously and persistently celebrate?
Whether someone chooses to put even more intentional effort to celebrate on TDOV or it simply falls as another day on the calendar to celebrate the trans community, the ideas below are meant to inspire and remind you of just how diverse your courageous and persistent celebration can be:
Attend a local TDOV event
Arches will be here on March 31 (come say hi!) https://projectrainbowutah.org/cal/events/tdov-community-celebration
Sign up to stake a pride flag (https://projectrainbowutah.org/sign-up)
Trans Readathon @ Under the Umbrella Bookstore (https://www.eventbrite.com/e/trans-readathon-tickets-1983917029240)
Cis? Treat a trans loved one & check in on them.
Even further, advocate when they’re not around.
Trans? Treat yourself & let others show up for you.
There’s no “right” way to be trans. Just be you.
Learn & empower:
General info: https://pflag.org/resource/transgender-resources/
Pre-colonial gender identity: https://www.bbc.com/reel/video/p08m2k3j/the-pre-colonial-genders-we-don-t-talk-about
Know your rights (LGBTQ+): https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/lgbtq-rights
Take care of your health: https://wpath.org/
A trans-centered independent news organization: https://translash.org/
Experience diverse trans media/art (personal favorites below)
Read: Stone Butch Blues (novel by Leslie Feinberg); Sissy: A Coming-of-Gender Story (memoir by Jacob Tobia); Man Alive: A True Story of Violence, Forgiveness and Becoming a Man (memoir by Thomas Page McBee)
Watch/Listen: Sense 8 (Netflix series directed by the Wachowski sisters); “I Am About to do a New Thing” (poem by Alok Vaid-Menon); “Your Life” (poem by Andrea Gibson)
Create your own art
TDOV prompt: What does gender euphoria feel like?
Wear a pronoun pin or share your pronouns out loud
Donate to local orgs & mutual aid that openly support trans futures
The goal is visibility, for all of us to collectively contribute to a narrative of healing that uplifts and honors gender diversity. Despite all there is to grieve, there is so much to celebrate.
