Transgender Day of Remembrance

Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDoR), also known as the International Transgender Day of Remembrance, has been observed annually (from its inception) on November 20 as a day to memoralize those who have been murdered as a result of transphobia. It is a day to draw attention to the continued violence endured by transgender people.

Transgender Day of Remembrance was founded in 1999 by Gwendolyn Ann Smith, a transgender woman, to memorialize the murder of transgender woman Rita Hester and it has slowly evolved from the web-based project started by Smith into an international day of action. In 2010, TDoR was observed in over 185 cities throughout more than 20 countries.

The County of San Mateo has observed Transgender Day of Remembrance since 2015. By providing these annual days of action, we hope to create more awareness, education, and visibility to stop this violence enacted toward transgender individuals.

flyer with program information, speaker photo and QR code to RSVP

In 2025, the County is recognizing Transgender Day of Remembrance in various ways. We encourage you to visit, attend or participate in any of these free events:

An altar for Transgender Day of Remembrance will be available for viewing in the lobby of 500 County Center from November 04 to December 1. The Lobby of 500 County Center is open to the public Monday-Friday, 8:00am - 5:00pm.
The County of San Mateo is hosting a Transgender Flag-raising on Wednesday, November 12 from 9:00-9:30am in the County Center Courtyard.
Transgender Day of Remembrance will be held on Thursday, November 20 from 5:30-7:30pm at South San Francisco Parks & Recreation | Library. Please register to attend the event or to receive a Zoom link for the Reading of the Names and featuring speaker Chloe Corcoran.
REGISTER

Resources and Tools

Part of building equity and inclusion is taking the responsibility to learn on your own about implicit bias, privilege, and practical ways to move from being an "ally" to "advocate."