| Members of Tennessee
VALS and the Tennessee
Transgender Political Coalition will hold a
Candlelight Vigil on Thursday, November 20, at 7:30 p.m., in the Great
Room at OutCentral. The Transgender Day of Remembrance was set aside to memorialize those who were killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice. The event is held in November to honor Rita Hester, whose murder in 1998 kicked of the "Remembering Our Dead" web project and a San Francisco candlelight vigil in 1999. Since then, the event has grown to encompass memorials in dozens of cities across the world, including Nashville. The GLBTQIF community just recently learned of the brutal murder of Duanna Johnson, a transgender female living in Memphis, Tennessee. Ms. Johnson was the victim of a beating on February 12, 2008, by two Memphis police officers in what has been described as a hate crime. Ms. Johnson's murder is yet another disturbing act of violence against the transgender community in Memphis, including the apparent murder of Ebony Whitaker, a transgender woman, in July 2008 and the murder of Tiffany Berry in February 2006. OutCentral is located at 1709 Church Street in Nashville. Street parking is available. Parking is also available at the US Post Office and spaces immediately behind OutCentral. Do NOT park in private lots or other business lots because they are active tow away zones. The event is free and open to the public. |