Materials
[Speaker 1:] In 1999, the transgender activist Gwendolyn Ann Smith and others began observing the Transgender Day of Remembrance as a vigil to honor the memory of Rita Hester, a transgender woman who was killed in 1998. Each year the world over, people gather on and around November 20th to remember the victims of anti-trans violence who have died in the previous year.
So we gather here today. We gather to remember these people, and many others, including those we don’t know about. We gather at our Rainbow Garden, a symbol of our commitments to LGBTQ+ justice. Our pink, blue, and white post reminds us of our trans siblings. We also surround our black and brown posts, remembering that the vast majority of the trans people we lose are our Black and Brown siblings.
As you hear these names, I invite you to come up, take a stone from this basket [of earthen stones], and lay it at the base of one of these posts.
[Sp 1: rings chime]
[Sp 2:] Naomi McNew, Age 23, We remember you...
[Sp 3:] Blaire Crits-Christoph, We don’t know your age but we remember you...
[Sp 4:] Righteous Torrence Chevy Hill, Age 35, We remember you...
[Sp 2:] Rain Forest Laranang-Mellor Jr., Age 31, We remember you...
[Sp 1: rings chime]
Let’s hold these names, these people’s memories, in our minds and hearts with a moment of silence.
Memory is where we must begin, but it cannot be where we end. In the year and years to come, we commit ourselves to making this church, this state, this world a place where trans people will live and flourish. Take a stone from this basket [with bright stones], and hold it in your palm. Warm it with the heat of your hand. Warm it with your intentions to make this world a better place. When you leave today, set this stone in a place where it will remind you of your commitments.
Peace, Amen, So May It Be.
This was a ritual I designed & offered to observe Transgender Day of Remembrance at First Universalist Church of Denver on 24 November 2024. This was held outside after morning worship on a busy street at the congregation's Rainbow Post Garden, a monument to their commitment to LGBTQ+ inclusion. As such, this ritual was very site-specific. The litany is a sample of names of the people who died in 2023-2024.