Today is Transgender Day of Remembrance, which honors and commemorates the deaths of transgendered individuals who were murdered because of intolerance. The event comes a week after Duanna Johnson, a Memphis transgendered woman, was killed. Begun in 1999 to remember the life of Rita Hester, the event has spread across the globe, with memorial services and remembrances scheduled across the globe. Tracee McDaniel, who is organizing the Atlanta vigil, said of the day:

"“It’s always emotional for me, but it’s always good to see we have support. We just need to keep awareness out there that there is discrimination against transgender people and until we get some kind of legal protections, employment protections, we will continue to raise awareness.”

You can find the location nearest you at Gender.org's website.

Just days after a 22 year-old Syracuse woman was murdered because she was gay, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee asserted on The View today that gay civil rights should not be taken seriously because "[b]lacks were stoned, hung, and dragged for their constitutional right to ’sit at the table.’ Whites — gay or not — already had a seat at that table.”

Where to begin? A police report out today says 22 year-old Moses "Teish" Cannon was shot outside a party in Syracuse, NY last Friday because she was a lesbian.

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The body of transgender woman Duanna Johnson, 40 was found yesterday afternoon in North Memphis, TN. The Memphis Flyer reports:

Johnson was the victim of a Memphis police brutality case this summer when a video of former officer Bridges McRae beating her in a jail holding area was released to the media.

The video led to the eventual firing of McRae and Officer James Swain. It also led to the formation of a Stop Police Brutality Memphis, a coalition of human rights activists who lobbied the city council for more sensitivity training for Memphis Police officers.

A statement from the Mid-South Peace and Justice Center: "Duanna bravely confronted the Memphis Police Department officers who brutalized her while she was in police custody. At great personal cost, Duanna was the public face of our community's campaign against racism, homophobia, and transphobia. There was no justice for Duanna Johnson in life. The Mid-South Peace & Justice Center calls for justice in the investigation and prosecution of Duanna's murder."

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A second cop has been fired for his role in the assault on trans prostitute Duanna Johnson: "A Memphis Police Officer is off of the job after an alleged beating of a transgender person, that was caught on camera. Memphis Police have confirmed that Officer Bridges McRae was fired following an administrative hearing about the incident." [ABC 24]

Remember Duanna Johnson, the trans prostitute beat down by police in Memphis? Well, since the video tape emerged, Johnson says she's received a "tremendous" number of phone calls from trans folk people who claim cops beat them, too. Official records indicate a total of forty reported incidents, but Johnson and others suspect there's more where that came from. Meanwhile, Johnson informed police officials that she's filing a civil lawsuit, but will settle for a cool $1.3 million. [Bilerico and WREG]

February 12th turned out to be a terrible night for Duanna Johnson.

The first bummer came when the transgendered Memphis resident got nabbed for prostitution.

Then, as if that's not bad enough, she ended up getting assaulted by a police officer.

Actually, not even assaulted – straight up beat down:

The officer hit Johnson several times with the handcuffs wrapped around his knuckles. In the video, you can see the flash of the metal. The tape shows another officer holding Johnson's shoulders as she tries to protect herself.
…
Then he maced her. On the tape, other people in the room are seen turning away and fanning their hands because of the smell.

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