Old Dominion University Observes Transgender Day of Remembrance

November 18, 2015

On Friday, Nov. 20, Old Dominion University will honor the memory of transgender people who were killed due to their gender identification. The observance will take place between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. in the main lobby of Webb Center.

The International Transgender Day of Remembrance has been observed annually since 1998 when the first event was held in response to the murder of Rita Hester, a transgender woman who was killed in Allston, MA. The event is intended to bring awareness to the greater community of the violence transgender people face regularly and to be a show of support to their families and loved ones.

This will be ODU's first observance of the TDOR, prompted in part by increased visibility of the transgender community at ODU, and in part by the murder of Lamia Beard, a transgender woman who was killed on Jan. 17, 2015 near the intersection of 25th Street and Church Street, in Norfolk.

At the event, Safe Space members will be on hand to answer questions and provide additional information about how community members can help in the worldwide effort to reverse this trend.

The Transgender Day of Remembrance is made possible by the support and assistance of the ODU Safe Space Committee, ODU Out, and the ODU Office of Intercultural Relations.

For information on Transgender Day of Remembrance, please visit http://www.glaad.org/tdor.