Ayanna Pressley: “I thank the gentlewoman for her leadership and for always fighting for those too often ignored, left out, and left…”

“I thank the gentlewoman for her leadership and for always fighting for those too often ignored, left out, and left behind. We are grateful for her. Now, just as I close, as we wrap this Special Order hour, Transgender Day of Remembrance is about remembering lives we have lost too soon, but it should also be about remembering the bravery of transgender people everywhere. I rise again to acknowledge the contributions, often overlooked, of transgender women of color who have been champions of social change. It was transgender advocates in my district who established the first Transgender Day of Remembrance in 1999 in honor of Rita Hester, a Black transgender woman described as vivacious, outgoing, and loved by many people. On this day, I rise to remember the transgender women of color who were catalysts for the LGBT rights movement in the United States and around the world. We remember the bravery of Miss Major Griffin-Gracy and the late Sylvia Rivera, and Marsha P. Johnson in the face of the police who violently raided the Stonewall Inn in New York City in 1969, detaining and arresting people simply for being themselves. When faced with compounded transphobia, racism, sexism, and homophobia, transgender people have marched and resisted. When confronted with structural barriers, transgender people have organized and advocated.…”