Every year, Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDoR) or International Transgender Day of Remembrance is observed on November 20. This day honours the memory of the transgender people who were murdered in activities related to transphobia. The main aim of TDoR is to draw attention to the continued violence faced by transgender people.

Transgender Day of Remembrance was founded in 1999 by Gwendolyn Ann Smith to memorialise the murder of Rita Hester, a transgender woman, in Allston, Massachusetts. Hester was murdered on November 28, 1998. The incident created an uproar among citizens, especially the transgender community, which set in motion important tradition that has become the Transgender Day of Remembrance.

"Transgender Day of Remembrance seeks to highlight the losses we face due to anti-transgender bigotry and violence. I am no stranger to the need to fight for our rights, and the right to simply exist is first and foremost. With so many seeking to erase transgender people -- sometimes in the most brutal ways possible -- it is vitally important that those we lose are remembered, and that we continue to fight for justice," Gwendolyn Ann Smith was quoted as saying by Glaad.org.

TDoR honours all transgender who lost their lives due to anti-transgender violence. A TDoR memorial typically includes reading names of those killed from November 20 of the past year to November 20 of the current year.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 19, 2020 07:20 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).