Q Center

In a world where a money and power talk, our community is not only silenced, it walks with its head down. Hate is an act of blind rage and deafened listening. Our community needs to lift its head and power up our voices. Our very lives are at stake. That is the power behind the Transgender Day of Remembrance. This is merely a reminder that there is power in numbers to overcome the cheapening of our lives, and in reflecting upon our own safety. Just a day after the “Great American Smokeout” and days before we gather with the reminders of our upbringing on Thanksgiving Day, we reflect on members of our community who paid the ultimate price for their determination. Each year, Q Center at the University of Washington directs our local reflections with a candlelight vigil, remembrances, and thoughtful discussion. This year, the activities begin with a panel on “Working Toward Justice from a Place of Grief” beginning Wednesday, November 18, at 5 pm at the Ethnic Cultural Theatre. Later at 7 pm that same evening, Ravenna United Methodist Church holds its own reflection service. On Friday, November 20, the actual Day of Remembrance, UW begins its commemoration by offering reflective space from 9 to 5:30 pm in the Q Center conference in Schmitz Hall 450. A dramatization or “Die-In” will begin at 12:20 pm Friday afternoon at the Obelisk structure in Red Square (orientation for Die-In participants starts at noon).