Monthly Spotlight: Transgender Day of Visibility

The world observes Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV) to raise awareness about transgender people. It is a day to celebrate the lives and contributions of trans people, while also drawing attention to the poverty, discrimination, and violence the community faces. -Glaad

Who are some transgender people who have changed the world?

• Lili Elbe- artist and illustrate who became the inspiration behind her wife's famous painting: 'Les Femmes Fatales'
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• Christine Jorgensen- The first to publically transition in the US, she embraced it and became a singer and actress
• Roberta Cowell- had a career as a Grand Prix racing driver and was a front-line Spitfire Piolet in WW2
• Marsha P. Johnson- credited with kickstarting the Stonewall Uprising, she also started and campaigned for trans rights and inclusion.
• Michael Dillon- The first person in the world to transition from female-to-male through hormones and surgery, he was also a trained and qualified doctor
• Kye Allums- First openly transgender athlete in the NCAA Division 1
• Brandon Teena- An American trans man who was raped and murdered in Nebraska. His murder was a catalyst for a lobbying effort for hate crimes legislation
• Gavin Grimm- He became a leader in the transgender movement. Grimm filed suit against the school board alleging the district violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 by denying him use of the boy’s restroom. 
• Laverne Cox- She has emerged as a tireless advocate for the LGBTQ+ community. A prominent actress and the first openly transgender person nominated for an Emmy, Laverne Cox has promoted visibility and awareness on behalf of the transgender community.
• Wendy Carlos- She is an electric musician who released Switched-On Bach in 1968, which won three Grammy awards and became one of the first classical albums to sell 500,000 copies. She went on to compose notable scores for films like A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, and Tron.

• 1.6 Million people age 13+ identify as transgender in the US

  • 1.3 million adults identify as transgender

  • 300,000 youth identify as transgender

• 18% of people who identify as transgender are between 13-17

  • 8% of the US population are aged 13-17

• 39% are transgender women

  • 36% are transgender men

• 231,200 adults (18+) in the Midwest identify as transgender

  • 54,500 US Youth (13-17) identify as transgender in the Midwest

  • 18-24 about 81,200 identify as transgender

  • 25-64 about 119,900 identify as transgender

  • 65+ about 30,100 identify as transgender

• Estimates of the percent of residents in U.S. regions who identify as transgender range from 1.8% in the Northeast to 1.2% in the Midwest for youth ages 13 to 17, and range from 0.6% in the Northeast to 0.4% in the Midwest for adults. 

• When Asked to Describe Themselves, Trans People Are More Likely to Say They Are Non-binary Than a Trans Man or Woman40% non-binary

  • 22% trans woman

  • 22% gender non-conforming, trans

  • 12% trans man

  • 2% some other way

• Larger shares of trans adults live on incomes below $50,000 per year than non-trans adults

  • 57% of trans adults are below vs 45% of non-trans adults

  • 41% of trans adults make more than $50k vs 54% of non-trans adults

• Trans adults have lower education levels than non-trans adults with 8 in 10 having less than a college degree  

• 372 trans and gender-expansive people have lost their lives to fatal violence since 2013

  • 36 of whom lost their lives in the last 12 months (report from November 2024)

  • 274 of which were trans women of color

    • 226 were black trans women 

• 84% of trans and gender-expansive victims of fatal violence were people of color

  • 83% were trans women

  • 61% of black trans women

• Victims average the age of 30 at the time of their death

  • 3 in 4 under the age of 35

  • 1 in 10 under the age of 21

• Since 2013, victims have been identified in 199 cities across 41 states

  • 63% of victims were killed in just 10 states

  • 9% of victims in Florida and 10% in Texas

  • 6 cities have seen 10+ deaths

• In 1/3 of all cases, the killer is known

  • 1 in 4 killed by an intimate partner

  • 1 in 6 by an acquaintance

  • 1 in 10 killed by a friend or family

• 18 transgender or gender-expansive people have died at the hands of the police or while in custody

• 2/3 of trans and gender-expansive people killed in the last 12 months were killed via gun

  • 258 killed by gun since 2013

• Since 2013 guns have been involved in 100% of all killings by police,74% by a friend or family member, and 63% by an intimate partner

• More than 1 in 10 (12%) LGBTQ+ young people attempted suicide in the past year

  • ages 13-17: 16%

  • ages 18-24: 8%

• 46% of transgender and nonbinary young people seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year

• More than half (54%) of transgender and nonbinary young people found their school to be gender-affirming

  • Those who did reported lower rates of attempting suicide

• 90% of LGBTQ+ young people said their well-being was negatively impacted due to recent politics

• 45% of transgender and nonbinary young people reported that they or their family have considered moving to a different state because of LGBTQ+ -related politics and laws

• 61% who were on gender-affirming hormones were somewhat or very concerned about losing access to this care

• 28% of transgender and nonbinary young people reported that they have been physically threatened or harmed in the past year due to their gender identity

• 65% of transgender and nonbinary young people reported that they have felt discriminated against in the past year due to their gender identity 

• 13% of LGBTQ+ young people reported being threatened with or subjected to conversion therapy

  • approx. 1 in 6 transgender and nonbinary young people (16%) and nearly 1 in 10 cisgender young people (9%)

• Approximately 54,500 youth (ages 13-17) and 231,200 adults (18+) identify as transgender in the Midwest alone

  • About 300K youth and 1.3M adults in the whole of the US identify as transgender

  • About 7,100 adults and 2,100 youth identify as transgender in Iowa

  • North Carolina is estimated to have the most adults identifying as transgender (about 71,300)

  • New York is estimated to have the most youth identifying as transgender (about 34,800)

  • The South is estimated to have the most people (youth- 102,200 and adults- 523,600) who identify as transgender

This information is gathered from the

Human Rights Campaign

 Pew Research Center

 KFF

UCLA School of Law- Williams Institute

Human Rights Campaign Foundation

Trevor Project

UCLA Williams Institute

• Several factors contribute to the high risk for violence experienced by trans and GNC people. Ending this epidemic requires addressing and eliminating anti-transgender stigma and discrimination across all facets of society and embracing people of all genders for who they are.

• There are few existing legal protections expressly inclusive of transgender people at the federal and state levels. This epidemic of violence cannot be stemmed until transgender and gender-expansive people have full lived and legal equality and our systems are reformed to address the epidemic and its root causes.

  • Pass the Equality Act & State Non-Discrimination Laws

  • Increase LGBTQ+ data collection at the Federal and State Levels

  • Prohibit the LGBTQ+ and Transgender "Panic Defense"

  • Increase access to name and gender marker updates on identification documents

    • and resist attempts to roll back access wherever possible

  • Address the policing crisis

• Everyday steps you can take:

  • Use the correct names and pronouns for transgender and gender-expansive people

    • in life and in death

  • Support laws and policies that prohibit discrimination based on gender identity

  • Speak out and fight back against anti-LGBTQ+ legislation

Information from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation