Transgender Day of Remembrance Vigil Held In Portland

PORTLAND, Maine - Members of Portland's transgender community came together over the weekend for the annual Transgender Day of Remembrance.
 
The annual vigil held Sunday evening remembers people murdered in transphobic incidents worldwide. WGME-TV reports organizers hold the event to raise awareness about the high rates of violence that transgender people face both in the United States and around the world.
 
According to the Trans Murder Monitoring Project, 325 trans people died between October 1, 2016 and September 30, 2017. That number is up from the same reporting period in 2016, where 295 people died.
 
Multiple speakers read the names of all 325 victims Sunday, 25 of which were in the United States.
 
On Monday, two more vigils will happen in both Augusta and Bangor.