Transgender Day of Remembrance held by Samo's GSA

Samo participated in the internationally-recognized annual Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR) in association with the Gender Sexuality Alliance (GSA) on Wednesday, Nov. 20.Founded in 1998, TDOR memorializes those who lost their lives due to anti-transgender violence and raises public awareness of hate crimes spawned by homophobia.In 2013 alone, the United States passed same-sex marriage laws in 16 states, and similar legislation is still underway in Washington. Nonetheless, the TDOR website reports that hundreds of transgender people were killed in the world this year because of their sexuality.More than a dozen of these deaths were in the United States.According to GSA President Ruhi Bhalla (‘14), this year GSA wasn’t allowed to follow its initial plan to set out candles and release balloons. Despite this, GSA provided a vigil to honor the event, which ended up being successful.“We put up posters to commemorate people and educate others about violence in the transgender community,” Bhalla said. “We made announcements on the PA system and these posters were on the bulletin board in the hall.”The club's efforts aim to have an effect beyond the realm of the hallway, according to GSA member Nagel Martinez (’14),“The day is not about the benefits for GSA, it is about remembering those who have lost their lives and have been discriminated against,” Martinez said. “It’s importance is to renew our dedication to making sure that all human beings are able to live freely and safely with honor, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender.”Bhalla said that although Samo is fairly accepting, students proceeded with cautious optimism.“While I was hoping for the best, I was prepared for a little push back,” Bhalla said. “I often receive a lot of push back when talking about issues regarding the transgender and gender non-conforming community.”Although Samo's population is vast, according to Martinez, the way to start an LGBQ-accepting future is to start small, on a local community basis, and watch the spirit and message ripple outward.“Samo may only be one school, but we are a school of over 3,000 students,” Martinez said. “It is important for us to reach out as much as possible to those who need support and put effort into making this campus a safe space for everyone.”ekohut@thesamohi.com