While the rights of same sex couples and lesbians and gays in our community are finally seeming to be addressed Transgender people the world over, still suffer from inequalities, some even pay the ultimate price, losing their life.

This November 20 marks the 14th annual Transgender Day of Remembrance. The first TDR came about in 1999  as an online project to honour US citizen Rita Hester, a trans woman from Boston whose brutal murder in the late 90s remains unsolved to this day.

Today Transgender Day of Remembrance serves several purposes; It raises public awareness of hate crimes against transgender people – an action that current media doesn’t perform – as well as provides a space to mourn and honour the lives of our trans brothers and sisters who might otherwise be forgotten.

To coincide with the day in NSW, the Deputy Lord Mayor will be releasing a report on the affects of and instances of violence targeting Trans people in Australia.