Today is the day on which we remember all of those trans people whose lives were cut short by hate-motivated murders during the past year. Bristol’s official ceremony won’t be until Friday, which is just as well because I have Fringe to host tonight. However, I did want to do a post to remind you all of the occasion.

As usual, the statistics of the year’s murders can be found at the Transgender Europe website created for the purpose. This year the total number of murders is 325. That is up significantly from 295 last year. The increase is entirely due to a massive rise from 123 to 171 in Brazil. Most other countries have seen a fall, though the total for the USA has risen from 23 to 25.

Thankfully there have been no trans murders in the UK this year. However, given the amount of hate being pumped out by the mainstream media right now, I think it is only a matter of time before someone gets killed. I know that friend of Roz Kaveney’s was assaulted badly enough to need hospitalization recently, and the intensity of the rhetoric has been ramping up every week. I’m also seeing a lot of very upset young people on social media. It is one thing for me to be worrying about having all of my civil rights stripped away after a long and happy life; it is quite another if you are 19 or 25.