Trinity students have today gathered to commemorate the lives lost to transphobia. The gathering, organised by Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union (TCDSU) was held in the Rose Garden next to Library Square this afternoon. The gathering saw around 15 students in attendance.
According to the event’s Facebook page, “the LGBT+ community is making great strides in the pursuit of equality, but many of [their] siblings experience violence, discrimination, exclusion and erasure”. They also drew attention to the lack of accessible health care for trans individuals, and said that “things must change”.
The gathering was led by Felix O’Connor, current QSoc Chair. The attendees read poems before tying blue, pink and white ribbons to the trees in the Rose Garden “to remember those that have been lost”. Following this, QSoc hosted attendees who “need to unwind and relax after an emotionally demanding service”.
This comes before a protest gathering at the Spire today. The protest, according to its Facebook page, is to “show [their] opposition to a system where trans people’s lives are devalued”. It continued by saying that while mourning for those that have been lost it is “important to keep on fighting for those who are living”.
Following the protest, attendees are to gather at the Trans Day of Remembrance Ceremony in the Dublin Unitarian Church.
This comes some months after Trinity students marched to Leinster House in support of improved transgender healthcare in Ireland, alongside the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) and various transgender rights activists. The march during the summer was described as “a display of unity and a demand to improve access and services”.
The event was held less than a week after Queen’s University Belfast Students’ Union (QUBSU) introduced a Transgender Students’ Officer. The move was intended to “improve the engagement and representation that these minority groups face in society”.
