Saturday will be a day of reflection for trans-people who have been killed over the past year as well as public awareness of transphobia in society. 

To mark the occasion, Moose Jaw Pride will be holding an outdoor seven-hour vigil from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in front of Rainbow Retro and the Moose Jaw Pride offices. 

Over the past year, 375 trans and gender-diverse people were reported murdered worldwide. Despite the staggering number of murders, Canada did not record a murder in 2020 and, generally, murder numbers of low in our country. 

“We’ve certainly made a great deal of progress in Canada in regards to both legal protections for transgender people as well as social movement towards acceptance that means that violence isn't enacted against trans people that would require legal proceedings,” said Moose Jaw Pride vice-chair Cole Ramsey. 

From Jan. 1, 2008, to Sept. 30, 2021, 4,021 trans and gender-diverse people were reported murdered. 

While Canada has come a long way towards acceptance, Ramsey said there is still a lot we can do as a society to help. 

“The first step for everybody I would say is education and it's usually not formal education like taking a class or something like that, but meeting trans people in your community, knowing that even if you don't know who they are exactly, that there are trans folks around you that were part of the community,” they said. 

Everyone is welcome to stop by the vigil on Saturday to visit and learn more. COVID-19 safety measures will be in place including social distancing and masking. You can learn more about Transgender Day of Remembrance here.