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Standing Against Hate and Discrimination

The transgender and gender non-conforming community gathered this past Saturday, October 24th, at Acacia Park to promote inclusion and take a stand against hate and discrimination in Colorado Springs. In turn, they represented more than a hundred in numbers.

Transgender Awareness and Issues

Drawing advocates and supporters from all across Southern Colorado, the second annual “Trans Visibility March” they raised awareness of transgender issues. Therefore, they are bringing attention to the inequalities the community face.

The community faces a lot of discrimination, said Oberyn Wolfe, who attended the event. These types of events are very important to our community. This community comes from different intersections from life whether it’s race, gender, or sex.

Representation for the Transgender Community

It’s important to have representation for the transgender community. We are going to be here for a long time to come. We are here, your friends, your family, and your coworkers, Wolfe explained.

Public Space and Starting Conversations

Events like these start conversations but they are generally not discussed in Colorado Springs, organizers say.

“Just for us to be in a public space and be like hey these are the things that we are going through, yes you have a trans and non-binary community here,” said Ash Stephens, Organizer of the Trans Visibility March.

Speakers, Poets, Musicians, and Vendors at the Rally

At this event, there were speakers, poets, musicians, and vendors. The masks and social distancing is mandatory. Therefore, with the increase in COVID-19 cases and the recent cap on gatherings, organizers said they had to make changes and make the march a rally.

Trans People of Color and the LGBTQ+ Communities|

“People of color have been disproportionately affected by COVID. This pertains to trans people of color and the LGBTQ+ communities. However, I didn’t want to try and speak out for my community. Then bring them to an event where they would leave and therefore might get COVID. We couldn’t come up without a way to march safely six feet in distance, in turn, so we decided to just do a rally,” said Stephens.