AUGUSTA — The Holocaust and Human Rights Center of Maine will host a reading at noon Friday, Nov. 20, at the Michael Klahr Center on the campus of the University of Maine at Augusta. The reading will include the names of transgender individuals who were murdered or died under mysterious circumstances during the past year, according to a news release from the HHRC.

The event, which is free and open to the public, is an opportunity to learn about the grim statistics of transgender individuals. In the United States, 90 percent of transgender individuals have reported some form of work or housing discrimination solely because of their gender. As of Nov. 10, the list of those murdered had reached 73 names, and the average age of those individuals is 27 years old. The list does not include those whose murders went unreported, or those who have died by suicide. Alarmingly, 41 percent of those who identify as transgender have reported attempting suicide, compared to 1.4 percent of the general population.

The HHRC is presenting this program in conjunction with its current exhibit, Transgender Maine. The exhibit, which opened in September and runs through Dec. 18, focuses on Maine people who identify as transgender, those who support and advocate for them, and the efforts in Maine to get equal rights and recognition for the needs and health of transgender people.

The Michael Klahr Center is on the campus of the University of Maine at Augusta, 46 University Drive, Augusta. Exhibit hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, or by appointment on weekends and evenings.

Transgender Maine is made possible with support and contributions from the UMA Diversity Committee, Maine Transnet, Equality Maine, The Maine Transgender Lobby, Safe Space Radio, The Trans Youth Equality Foundation, The Maine State Archives, The Whitefield Historical Society, The Maine State Museum, The Sampson Archives at USM, The Maine Women’s Lobby, USM Center for Sexualities and Gender Diversity, The Maine People’s Alliance, the Schlesinger Library at Harvard, The Transgender Archives at the University of Victoria, B.C., Canada, SAGE Maine, Maine People’s Alliance, GLSEN; and many individuals throughout Maine.

For more information, or to schedule a visit, call the HHRC at 621-3530 or visit hhrcmaine.org.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.