This Saturday, November 20, the International Day of the Trans memory, where transsexuals, transgender and gender non-binary people are remembered who have been killed by the transphobia, that is, hatred, discrimination and violence that the trans community suffers from.
This day was created in 1998 by Gwendolyn Ann Smith, a graphic designer, columnist, transexual and activist, according to the Radio and TV Discrimination Observatory.
She chose this day in memory of Rita Hester, Afro-American transsexual woman, murdered on November 28, 1998. This case was not resolved and, according to Amnesty International, it was a hate crime.
What does the flag mean?
The trans flag arrived in 1999, it was created by Monica Helm, a trans woman, and was shown for the first time a year later, in 2000, during a pride march in Phoenix, Arizona, United States.
This flag It has five horizontal colored stripes: two light blue, one white and two light pink, which for Helms have a special meaning, according to Algarabía (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association in the Canary Islands).
She said that the blue bars at the top and bottom are for the color that is usually assigned to men, the stripes that follow are pink, since it is the traditional one for girls, while the white in the center “is for those people who were born intersexuales, who are in transition or consider that they have a neutral or undefined gender ”.
In addition, Monica Helm, assured that the order in the flag that he had created did not matter, since anyone is always the right one: “it is correct, for us it means the search for the correction of our lives”.
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Another of the flags of the trans community is the version of Jennifer Holland in 2002. Algarabía, mentions that she was not aware of the Helms flag, and wanted to give a symbol to the trans community, in this way she created a completely different one, but with the same objective.
It has five horizontal stripes, the pink in the upper part represents women and the blue in the lower part represents men, while the three shades of purple are for the diversity of the trans community and the genders that are not men or women.
Transphobia in Mexico
Mexico ranks second worldwide in hate crimes due to phobias of sexual diversity, according to the National Observatory of Hate Crimes against LGBT people, which means that in our country trans people cannot develop a full life, without violence and discrimination.
Today on the “International Day of Trans Memory” we honor the people who have been murdered for crimes of transphobia Not one more!
We invite you to read the full note at https://t.co/Uxl7nO93G5 pic.twitter.com/4Foh87aQ4i– UNAM Gender Equality (@IgualdadUnam) November 20, 2021
Therefore, today is a perfect day to reflect on the transphobia and discrimination; as well as, on the need for safe spaces where the rights of the trans community are guaranteed.
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