HRC, led by HRC President Alphonso David, will join thousands of transgender advocates and allies at the National Trans Visibility March and Rally tomorrow in Washington, D.C. David and HRC Foundation Co-Chair Jodie Patterson will deliver remarks. HRC staff, supporters and volunteers will march and rally alongside national and local civil rights organizations, and thousands of registered attendees.

“We must speak out and demand action at all levels to end the senseless epidemic of violence that has taken the lives of at least 18 transgender people this year,” said HRC President Alphonso David. “At a time when the Trump-Pence administration and anti-equality forces are actively working to discriminate against transgender, non-binary and gender-nonconforming people, we must stand up and fight back to support and protect our community. From the trailblazing advocates at Stonewall and Compton’s Cafeteria to the powerhouse advocates at the forefront of our movement today, the strength, diversity and resilience of the transgender community has driven so much of our progress for equality. We cannot and will not go backward, and we will remain united in the fight for equal justice for all.”

The National Trans Visibility March and Rally, which will feature a powerful line-up of speakers, including businesswoman, actress and advocate Angelica Ross, is part of a weekend of action, education, celebration and remembrance. This evening, HRC SVP of Programs, Research & Training Jay Brown will also be honored at the National Trans Visibility March’s Torch Awards, which recognize distinguished achievements and honors individuals whose work has impacted the lives of transgender, gender non-conforming and non-binary communities across the nation.

The event comes at a critical time for the transgender and broader LGBTQ community. Transgender people in the U.S. are also facing an epidemic of violence that disproportionately affects transgender women of color. There have been 18 known transgender victims of fatal violence in 2019; 17 of these victims were Black transgender women. Since 2013, there have been at least 150 known cases of fatal anti-transgender violence. Just last Friday in Dallas, a transgender woman was shot multiple times in what police are describing as a hate crime. Politically, transgender people are being targeted by the Trump-Pence Administration with a wave of egregious attacks, including banning transgender troops from serving openly in the military, refusing to defend the rights of transgender students in schools and attempting to erase transgender people from our nation’s civil rights laws. Trump and Pence have also stacked their cabinet and our courts with opponents of LGBTQ equality.

In their call to action, organizers of Saturday’s march said: “Today, recognizing our diversity, we speak out and demand our rights with one voice. The time has come for us to ignite and initiate change at every turn. The time has come for us to amplify our voices in the Nation’s capital, our local communities and other cities across the globe.”

HRC will continue to advocate for legal, policy and programmatic reforms to improve the lives and welfare of transgender people in this country and to defend this community and all LGBTQ people from anti-equality leaders who oppose our progress. Earlier today, HRC announced a significant expansion of its work dedicated to justice for the transgender community by advancing new initiatives specifically addressing the urgent needs of the community, especially of community members deeply impacted by racism, sexism and transphobia. This major effort will focus on economic empowerment; capacity-building programs; targeted task forces in communities hardest hit hard by the epidemic of anti-trans violence; and expanded public education campaigns.