International Transgender Day of Visibility takes place every year on March 31. As the Human Rights Campaign describes, it’s a day to celebrate the joy and strength of trans and non-binary people around the world. In the US alone, there are over 1.6 million trans, non-binary and gender-expansive young people and adults. Historically, these groups have been underrepresented, misunderstood and attacked. The Transgender Day of Visibility is an important opportunity to celebrate, advocate for and learn more about trans people. Here are 15 inspiring quotes:
“We have to be visible. We are not ashamed of who we are.” – Sylvia Rivera
Sylvia Rivera (1951-2002) was a trans activist and major figure in the 1969 Stonewall Inn uprising. After meeting Marsha P. Johnson, Riviera became more involved in trans rights and often clashed with other gay leaders reluctant to include transgender people. She died in 2002, but her activism continues through the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, which is a legal aid organization that serves low-income people and people of color who are trans, intersex and/or gender non-conforming.
“Trans people are extraordinary, strong, intelligent, persistent and resilient. We have to be. And we will not stand for the picking and choosing of rights. We still have hope.”- Sage Grace Dolan-Sandrino
Sage Grace Dolan-Sandrino was Teen Vogue’s first trans youth journalist, as well as a teen ambassador to the White House while Barack Obama was president. When Dolan-Sandrino was outed to her school at just 13 years old, she decided to live as her authentic self, despite the risks. Her story was chronicled in the Disney+ show “Growing Up.” In 2020, Dolan-Sandrino founded a creative studio and digital zine. The quote above, which comes from an interview with the Washington Post, celebrates the strength of trans people in the face of oppression.
“I genuinely hope that… anti-trans folks someday experience the joy and liberation of being comfortable in your own skin enough to know that the liberation of others is no threat to you. Equality is not a pie; there is more than enough for everyone.” – Charlotte Clymer
Charlotte Clymer is a writer, military veteran, transgender activist and communications consultant. She previously served as the Press Secretary for Rapid Response at Human Rights Campaign, the United States’ largest civil rights organization focused on LGBTQ+ equality. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, The Washington Post and other outlets. The quote above emphasizes how there are no limits on equality; giving equal rights to trans people doesn’t take away rights from anyone else.
“When I was younger, I wish I would have been told more often that I was right and nothing was wrong with me, that I was deserving of everything this world has to offer, and that my visions for my future were worthy of pursuit.” – Janet Mock
Janet Mock is a New York Times bestselling author, speaker, director and advocate. In 2018, she became the first trans woman of color to write and direct a TV show episode. She also became the first openly trans woman of color to sign a deal with a major content company (Netflix). Her first book, Redefining Realness, was the first biography written from a young trans person’s perspective. Mock’s quote above summarizes why Transgender Day of Visibility is so important. Young trans people need to hear that there’s nothing wrong with them, that they deserve equality and that their dreams matter.
Interested in learning more about trans rights? Here’s our Trans Rights 101 guide.
“There isn’t a trans moment….It’s just a presence where there was an absence. We deserve so much more.” – Hari Nef
Hari Nef is an actor and model who’s been featured in Vogue, the Amazon show Transparent, and the blockbuster Barbie. She was the first openly trans model to sign with the agency IMG. Her quote responds to frequent proclamations that the world is having a “trans moment.” This phrasing can imply the moment will pass or that trans people haven’t always been around. The reality is there’s just increased invisibility. Trans people deserve so much more than “a moment.”
“Each step forwards to become the person we are makes it harder to go backwards, to return to the shadowy, private world of closed doors and shuttered windows. The experience, the awakening of one’s true self, after being so long suppressed, can never be adequately explained with language.” -Lili Elbe
Lili Elbe (1882-1931) was a Danish artist. She was also one of the first people to receive gender-affirming surgery. Before transitioning, Elbe painted landscapes and posed for her wife’s paintings, but after transitioning, Elbe stopped painting. The novel The Danish Girl and a film of the same name loosely adapt her life. The quote above gives just a glimpse of what many trans people must feel after deciding to live as themselves.
“The more I hold myself close and fully embrace who I am, the more I thrive.” – Elliot Page
Elliot Page is an actor and writer who’s appeared in films like Hard Candy, Juno and Inception, as well as the TV show The Umbrella Academy. He came out as transgender in 2020 and became the first openly trans man to appear on the cover of Time Magazine a year later. His memoir Pageboy is an intimate portrait of the actor’s career and decision to embrace who he truly is. Many people can relate to the power of being true to yourself; it’s how we thrive.
“Let’s destroy all hierarchies and create the space for gender, sexual, social and political self-determination for everyone.” – Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore
Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore is an author, editor, filmmaker, artist and activist. Her anthology – Between Certain Death and a Possible Future – was one of BookRiot’s 100 Most Influential Queer Books of All Time. She also has bylines in publications like The New York Times Book Review, The Baffler, Literary Hub and much more. Her papers are archived at the San Francisco Public Library.
“The most radical thing that any of us can do is to stop projecting our beliefs about gender onto other people’s behaviors and bodies.” – Julia Serano
Julia Serano is a writer and activist best known for Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity, which is considered a groundbreaking and must-read text for anyone interested in transgender rights and politics. Serano is also a spoken word artist, musician and former researcher at UC Berkeley.
“There’s magic in being seen by people who understand—it gives you permission to keep going.” – Alok Vaid-Menon
Alok is a poet, public speaker, actor and comedian. They’re also the author of Beyond the Gender Binary, Femme in Public, and Your Wound/My Garden. The Advocate Magazine selected them as a 2023 “Advocate of the Year.” The quote above comes from Beyond the Gender Binary, which “deconstructs, demystifies and reimagines the gender binary.”
“But when you hear the same stories over and over again, from people from all over the world, you start realizing that transgender is not an anomaly. It’s a part of the spectrum of people’s realities. Then you stop wondering about the cause and you start realizing it’s a part of reality.” – Susan Kuklin
Susan Kuklin is an American photographer and acclaimed writer of children’s and teen’s books. In Beyond Magenta, which the quote above is from, Kuklin interviewed and photographed six transgender teens. In 2022, the book was banned in 11 school districts and is frequently on lists of most challenged books. Books like Beyond Magenta are vital as they share stories that are often ignored.
“As long as we are living in a culture where one has to prove their womanhood or manhood, we are not living in a free culture.” – Laverne Cox
Laverne Cox is an actor and activist. She was the first openly trans person nominated for an Emmy for her role in Netflix’s Orange is the New Black. She’s continued to act and speak out as an advocate for trans rights and racial justice. The quote above challenges the idea that people have to “prove” their identities. As long as society has these standards, no one can be truly free.
“Your sexuality or gender is as natural as your eye color, and you should never be ashamed of it.”- Juno Dawson
Juno Dawson is a bestselling author, screenwriter, journalist and columnist. She’s best known for This Book is Gay, a young adult nonfiction book that explores sexuality and gender. Dawson has also published bestselling novels. The quote above, which comes from This Book is Gay, encourages people to embrace their sexuality and gender as natural and not something shameful.
“We are pitted against each other in order to keep us from seeing each other as allies. Genuine bonds of solidarity can be forged between people who respect each other’s differences and are willing to fight their enemy together. We are the class that does the work of the world, and can revolutionize it. We can win true liberation.” – Leslie Feinberg
Leslie Feinberg (1949-2014) was, in hir words, an “antiracist, white, secular Jewish, working-class, transgender, butch lesbian female.” Throughout their life, Feinberg worked to connect the LGBTQ+ movement to other liberation movements. Through expansive pronoun use and helping to shift language from “transsexual” and “transvestite” to “transgender,” Feinberg is one of the most important activists of her time. The quote above encapsulates Feinberg’s mission to unite movements and strengthen solidarity.
“As I pondered a pronoun change, I began to think of gender less as a scale and more as a landscape. Some people are born in the mountains, while others are born by the sea. Some people are happy to live in the place they were born, while others must make a journey to reach the climate in which they can flourish and grow. Between the ocean and the mountains is a wild forest. That is where I want to make my home.” – Maia Kobabe
Maia Kobabe is a nonbinary queer author and illustrator. Kobabe’s best-known work is Gender Queer: A Memoir, a graphic-novel style nonfiction book that explores eir younger years, identity and coming out to loved ones. In the quote above, which is from Gender Queer, Kobabe describes the expansive opportunities for gender, pronouns and self-discovery.
