Every year, transgender people and their friends and allies take a moment to celebrate trans joy and recognize the strength, fierceness and beauty of the transgender and nonbinary community.
Celebrated around the world on March 31, the Transgender Day of Visibility, or TDOV, was created in 2009 after Rachel Crandall-Crocker, a Michigan-based psychotherapist, became “upset that the only day we had was Transgender Day of Remembrance,” a time when the community mourns the killings of their trans and nonbinary siblings.
Unlike its more somber counterpart, Trans Day of Visibility is a day when the community recognizes “that there are trans people living life and experiencing life, and succeeding and doing well — in spite of the death, [and the] really horrific archaic policies that are there to really erase us from our existence,” Tori Cooper, director for the Human Rights Campaign’s Transgender Justice Initiative, told the Daily News.
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This year, amid the an uptick in legislative attacks on transgender rights and increasing anti-trans violence in the U.S. the elevation of trans voices seems more necessary than ever. Throughout the week, TDOV celebrations have raised the trans pride flag in venues across the nation. However, events on March 31, which happens to fall on Easter Sunday, have been scaled down, “simply out of respect for folks to observe the religious holiday,” Cooper said.
Thankfully, there are still plenty of opportunities to celebrate trans joy in TDOV events across the city this weekend:
Saturday
Brooklyn
The Marsha P. Johnson State Park, a waterfront park in Williamsburg named in honor of the late LGBTQ rights hero, is keeping with its yearly tradition of celebrating Visibility Day with an afternoon of fun and entertainment. This year, the park is inviting the community to learn more about trans history and the park’s namesake. A performance by Drag Story Hour NY, followed by sessions of crafts and education, will keep younger attendees entertained. The all-ages event will be held at the Blue Park House by the park’s front entrance. Registration required. 2 pm.
Manhattan
The Black Trans Femmes in the Arts Collective, a New York City-based nonprofit that seeks to connect Black trans femmes through the arts by creating spaces for the production and preservation of Black trans art and culture, is leading a conversation on visual arts at the Leslie-Lohman Museum of Arts. Moderated by Jordyn Jay, BTFA Collective’s founder and executive director, the panel will bring together three Brooklyn-based artists: ms. z tye, Ava Tuitt, and Eve Harlow. Leslie Lohman Museum of Art, 26 Wooster St. at 4 p.m.
White Plains / Virtual
The LOFT LGBTQ+ Community Center, a White Plains-based nonprofit serving the LGBTQ community in Westchester and the Hudson Valley for over 40 years, is marking the date with an event for the trans and nonbinary community and their friends in New York and beyond. Tony Arrien, who has facilitated the center’s transgender peer support group since 2015, will lead a Zoom-powered conversation about the history of TDOV and its significance today. $5 suggested donation. 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
Sunday
Brooklyn
The Brooklyn GHOST Project, a Black trans-led nonprofit supporting transgender and non-binary people of color in New York City, is bringing back its annual Wig and Clothing Drive. According to the organization, whose name is an acronym for Guiding and Helping Others Survive Transition, the event is designed to uplift and bring awareness to Trans Day of Visibility and “to show the world we are here to stay.” The event is geared toward the trans community but open to all. 3 p.m. at the Brooklyn Pride Center in Crown Heights, 1561 Bedford Ave.
Manhattan
Transgender Jewish leaders are sharing their experiences and stories of hope, resiliency and joy as they celebrate their identities in a time of unprecedented attacks against the trans and nonbinary communities. The event is being hosted by the 92nd Street Y, the famed cultural and community center that has just celebrated its 150th anniversary, and Keshet, a group that works for full LGBTQ equality and inclusion in Jewish life. Multi-talented artist Dot Rose Levine will close the day with a musical performance. Tickets start at $10. 2 p.m. 92NY, 1395 Lexington Ave.
