Transgender Day of Remembrance
Floor Speech
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Ms. PRESSLEY. Madam Speaker, I rise in recognition of Transgender Day of Remembrance.
In 1999, Rita Hester, a transgender woman, was murdered in Allston, a neighborhood in my district, the Massachusetts Seventh. In response to this horrific tragedy, this day was created to memorialize the loss of her life and far too many others due to transphobic violence.
The cruelty of transphobia is a threat that we must confront and root out wherever it exists. Whether in music or on television or in the hallowed Halls of the Nation's Capitol, there is no place for hatred because someone is brave enough to show up exactly as they are and to live their truth.
Yet in 2021, we have seen at least 46 transgender or gender nonconforming people killed. We have been robbed of at least 46 souls, disproportionately Black and Latinx transwomen, and these are only the ones who have been properly reported.
On the floor of Congress, we speak their names:
Tyianna Alexander
Samuel Edmund Damian Valentin
Bianca ``Muffin'' Bankz
Dominique Jackson
Fifty Bandz
Alexus Braxton
Chyna Carrillo
Jeffrey ``JJ'' Bright
Jasmine Cannady
Jenna Franks
Diamond Kyree Sanders
Rayanna Pardo
Jaida Peterson
Dominique Luscious
Remy Fennell
Tiara Banks
Natalia Smut
Iris Santos
Tiffany Thomas
Keri Washington
Whispering Wind Bear Spirit
Sophie Vasquez
Danika ``Danny'' Henson
Serenity Hollis
Oliver ``Ollie'' Taylor
Thomas Hardin
Poe Black
EJ Boykin
Aidelen Evans
Taya Ashton
Shai Vanderpump
Tierramarie Lewis
Miss CoCo
Pooh Johnson
Disaya Monaee
Briana Hamilton
Kier Lapri Kartier
Mel Groves
Royal Poetical Starz
Zoella ``Zoey'' Rose Martinez
Jo Acker
Jessi Hart
Rikkey Outumuro
Marquiisha Lawrence
Jenny De Leon
And Jahaira DeAlto who was murdered in my district.
Jahaira, a friend, a mother, and an activist spoke out 22 years ago when Rita Hester was killed. As a survivor of domestic violence, she advocated for gender affirming shelters and, with kindness in her heart, opened her home to queer and trans people with nowhere to go.
Jahaira DeAlto's compassion will forever be her legacy, alongside her legendary status in the ballroom community for serving ``everyday realness.''
While we grieve the loss of loved ones, neighbors, and colleagues, we must also hold space to celebrate their lives and the differences they make in ours.
Transgender people are community organizers, military soldiers, and justice seekers who have put their bodies on the line domestically and abroad to fight for a safe and equitable society. They are artists, healers, and entertainers who nurture our soul and spread joy wherever they go. Most importantly, transgender people are beacons of hope and pillars of courage serving as living testaments of what it means to be unapologetically you.
While transphobia seeks to erase these truths, we must affirm the dignity of every member of the trans community.
So I rise today to remember Transgender Day of Remembrance and recommit myself to the work of justice and equity for all people, including my transgender siblings in the movement for liberation. Our destinies are tied.
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