The Transgender Memorial Garden in Benton Park West filled with people Thursday to celebrate the trans and gender non-conforming community in St. Louis.
Frigid spring temperatures and rain mixed with sleet couldn't drive away the crowd that gathered to mark the international Trans Day of Visibility.
鈥淚鈥檓 amazed at the turnout, overjoyed,鈥� said Michaela Joy Kraemer, an administrative assistant with the , which hosted the event. 鈥淒espite all the rain, I couldn鈥檛 believe how many people were out here, braving the cold.鈥�
The event featured speakers who shared personal stories and some of the ways their organizations work to support trans and non-binary people in St. Louis and the surrounding region. Luka Cai emphasized how important it is to just see other trans and gender expansive people.
鈥淓ven being at an event like this, seeing other trans people is incredibly inspiring and normalizing,鈥� they said. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 know who I could be until I saw that represented in the world.鈥�
Cai, who is originally from Singapore, shared memories from their childhood and how they never felt comfortable in their home country.
鈥淭he amount of enormous cultural pressure I felt forced me to go around the world and into an entirely new place,鈥� they said. 鈥淚 think that speaks volumes to how terrible transphobia can be.鈥�
Their experience drove them to establish the , which offers confidential emotional support and resources for the local queer community, said Cai, who is the executive director. It鈥檚 something they wish they had growing up, they said.
While Thursday鈥檚 event largely celebrated the progress and achievements of St. Louis鈥� transgender community, some of the speakers talked about the broader political reality in Missouri. For example, lawmakers in the Senate are .
鈥淢any of our elected officials think that trans kids don鈥檛 exist in Missouri,鈥� said Katy Erker-Lynch, executive director of , which advocates for LGBTQ inclusion and equality. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why Transgender Day of Visibilty is so essential. I shouldn鈥檛 have to say this, but transgender children have the right to grow into transgender adults.鈥�
Others were more blunt.
鈥淭he State of Missouri perpetually seeks to preempt us with laws driven by hatred and not with the best intentions to keep us or our communities safe,鈥� said St. Louis Mayor Tishaura Jones.
Jones used the opportunity to outline how her administration is different, having negotiated health care that supports transgender needs for full-time city employees and training her staff, Cabinet and fire and police leadership on pronoun usage.
鈥淭his year we hope to launch the city鈥檚 first ever LGBTQIA+ advisory board, with the mission to identify further opportunities to be inclusive and eliminate deadnaming and misgendering in city processes,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hese policies, these changes in government have happened because of you.鈥�
Kraemer said Jones鈥� appearance was significant as the first St. Louis mayor to attend a Trans Day of Visibility.
鈥淪he reached out to us to be proactive about this,鈥� Kraemer said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 so important for trans youth, even trans adults, to know that we exist, that we have people who are in charge, making decisions and fighting for our rights.鈥�
It was a feeling shared by some in attendance, like Drew, who came out as trans a few weeks ago. They didn鈥檛 want to share their last name.
鈥淭his is my first big trans event, and it鈥檚 really cool to be among people who get it and see me for who I really am,鈥� they said.
Eric Schmid covers the Metro East for 漏 2024 外网天堂 as part of the journalism grant program: , an initiative of The GroundTruth Project.
