Victims of transphobic violence honored for Transgender Day of Remembrance

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- It's a day to honor the victims of transphobic violence. The first Transgender Day of Remembrance was November 20th, 1999.

While trans-visibility has increased greatly in the last two decades, this group is still reportedly murdered at rate far higher than the national average.

For Madelyn Morrison, November 20th is personal.

"There was almost a time in my life that I almost wasn't here," she said.

Morrison, who is a transwoman, was attacked in Philadelphia in 2002.

"I just remember crying, and begging him not to hurt me, not to kill me," she recalled.

She managed to escape, but the emotional scars are still there. It's one of many stories we hear too often on Transgender Day of Remembrance.

Morrison says she never reported it.

"Because no one listens to us or we tell them what happened and we get blamed," she said.

As of last week, the Philadelphia DA's office has 11 active cases where the victim is trans. Of those 11 cases, four are aggravated assault.

"The trans violence is significantly off the scale," said Brad Windhauser, a professor at Temple teaching English and Gender studies.

He says while strides have been made, more needs to be done for the trans community.

"The purpose of a day like this is to show trans people you are seen, but also to show people perhaps who don't have access or interaction with the trans-community. I wasn't aware violence was so rampant against trans people, maybe I need to understand," he said.

What Morrison understands is that today is also about a second chance.

"Because I got a second chance to live, I will always hold space for those beautiful women, people in our community that we've lost," she said.

The observance of Transgender Day of Remembrance is not official in the United States, but President Biden became the first president to issue a statement in 2021.