Here is an open letter I sent to political leaders and town hall representatives of 4 towns across the Province, in hopes of securing their permission/participation, in events that will commemorate International Transgender Day of Remembrance, for November 19, 2013.
Greetings Political Leaders,
You are receiving this e-mail because you are, or you represent, one of the following: Premier, Minister of Justice, Minister of Health, Minister of Education, MHA or Mayor for areas of Clarenville, Gander, Springdale, and Grand Falls-Windsor. Also copying the provincial Official Opposition and the 3rd party.
Also, I write you today in my capacity as a Transgender person living in Newfoundland, and as a Transgender rights activist.
First of all, I write to say thanks and congrats to Minister King for announcing plans to include Gender Identity and Gender Expression in the Human Rights Act.
Secondly, I write to warn that this is only the tip if the iceberg. Discrimination against transgender people still occurs, by both private sector entities and government policies. Specifically, I raise concern to our health care system, which still has much improvement to do in order to adhere to global best practices. Our education also needs to take significant steps to ensure that trans issues and trans people are included in the curriculum.
Finally, I write to raise awareness and concern regarding an article posted in Springdale newspaper, the Norwester, that was published, and then removed. The text of the article has been captured and republished here: http://jennifermccreath.blogspot.ca/2013/11/newfoundland-newspaper-norwester.html . Perhaps even more concerning about the hateful and phobic nature of the article, was a subsequent article published in which the paper tried to justify why it was acceptable for them to have published it.
Trans identified people are also at increased risk of bullying, violent crimes, murder; as well as anxiety, stress, depression, and suicide. November 20 is International Transgender Day of Remembrance. While I plan on participating in events that day in the capital city, it is my plan to tour the Province on November 19, and organize/host memorial events in the towns of Clarenville, Gander, and Springdale.
My hopes are to organize events on the doorsteps of the respective Town Halls of these four great towns at the following times on Nov. 19:
Clarenville 7.30 am
Gander 12 noon
Springdale 6 pm
Grand Falls Windsor 9.30 pm
First and foremost, I would like to invite you all to attend and perhaps give a brief speech at the event at your corresponding town. Secondly, if any formal permits are required to organize a public gathering at these premises, I ask that someone please get in touch so that I may arrange to sign whatever paperwork is needed. Thirdly, I ask that you please spread the word about these events to any of your key contacts who may be able to further spread the word towards members of the local Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Communities, and their allies.
The traditional Transgender Day of Remembrance event usually consists of a low-key somber atmosphere where members of the trans community speak about some current issues affecting trans people, then the reading of a list of international victims who have lost their lives due to transphobic murders, or suicide.
To learn more about Trans Day of Remembrance, you may check this site: http://www.transgenderdor.org/
To review what a Trans Day of Remembrance event looks like, you can see an event, that I hosted in St. John's in 2011 here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uD6q_g6O6Eg
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please don't hesitate to get in touch.
--
Jennifer McCreath
St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
http://www.jennifermccreath.com
info@jennifermccreath.com
www.twitter.com/Jenn_McCreath
709-753-9529
www.npath.net
www.eastcoasttransalliance.org
Follow @Jenn_McCreath Tweet
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