Earlier this year, the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) and the Office of Equity and Racial Justice (OERJ) announced a new microsite—Together We Heal Creative Place (TWHCP)—that features 47 community-driven creative projects aimed at promoting racial healing and revitalizing neighborhoods.
One of the grantees is Together We Remember Elise, which honors the life and legacy of Chicago Therapy Collective (CTC) founding member and trans-rights activist Elise Malary with a mural. On Nov. 20—the Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR)—the CTC held an observance at 5237 N. Clark St. during a cold, blustery evening. Afterward, the CTC invited attendees inside its office to watch a slide show that unveiled the final mural design along with the artist (Jackson Rothmund). The final mural is slated to be unveiled on March 31, 2025—the Transgender Day of Visibility. (Another LGBTQ+ grantee is South Shore Remembers, which is a multimedia art and social justice project inspired by oral histories of past and present South Shore community members, with a special focus on the queer community.)
Albe Gutierrez (she/her/ella), an art therapist and bilingual psychotherapist with CTC, discussed the genesis of the project. “Elise was a founding member of the Chicago Therapy Collective and one of the biggest programs she helped design was the Hire Trans Now program (which has a job board here); it’s a citywide program. When she passed away, there were a lot of the same feelings—sadness, anger and hope.
“This mural project started with a call out to the Chicago artists who are LGBTQ+. There were about 20 artists who reached out; three finalists were chosen and they were invited to create a final design to honor Elise. Then, different community organizations (or stakeholders)—the Andersonville Chamber of Commerce, Women & Children First bookstore, Chicago Therapy Collective and Elise’s family—voted on the design they wanted to see. [Regarding Rothmund’s selection], the artist really chose to show the citywide impact that Elise has had and the ongoing legacy of queer liberation that her work was part of. You have the AIDS Memorial Park and other symbols of the LGBTQ+ community. The artist was really conscientious not only of the legacy of the trans community and rights, but also of Elise’s work.”
As for becoming part of TWHCP, Gutierrez said, “A lot of our work involves creative arts programming with healing and wellness. So we wanted to connect with artists in our community, giving them this opportunity with the wider community and, specifically, with this neighborhood.”
Gutierrez said that she had known Malary for several years before she passed, having initially met her at a gallery event. “I remember her fun-loving nature; there was always something so alive and joyful about her. And that girl loved to kiki—and every time I would see her, we would just cut up, laugh and tease. And there was the way she respected and had compassion for other queer folks, especially trans people.”
Speaking about this year’s TDOR event, Gutierrez said, “Every time it comes around, I feel sadness and anger—sadness about those siblings who have passed away, often to transphobia and violence, and anger that it continues to happen. But when I see the community come together, I’m hopeful when I see community members show support.” And that hope has not subsided with the 2024 presidential election result, with Gutierrez saying, “With this incoming administration, it’s going to be a challenge. I am hopeful, at least for Chicago and Illinois, because we have a lot of protections in place and we have a lot of allies. I feel a little less hopeful with the election of this president, but there’s still hope. (Some of that hope came in the form of news from Equality Illinois Director of Civic Engagement Jose “Che Che” Wilson that a bill that would make changing one’s name a less onerous process had passed out of a Illinois Senate committee and would go up for a full vote the following day.)
“TDOR, since it started in 1999, has been a somber day; it’s like Memorial Day for trans folks. Through the years, trans folks and communities have changed that ‘R’—Trans Day of Remembrance, Trans Day of Resilience, Trans Day of Rest, and other ‘r’ words in order to meet the needs of the community. This year, Chicago Therapy Collective changed the ‘R’ to reflect three things: rights, remembrance and release.”
Gutierrez also mentioned political support the local trans community has received from queer and non-LGBTQ+ alders alike such as Andre Vasquez (40th Ward) and Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth (48th Ward), for example. Manaa-Hoppenworth was at the TDOR event, becoming emotional when she spoke about how the community needs to come together; she also took part in lighting candles at the observance.
The CTC has said, “Through this project, we utilize the power of performance and visual art to reimagine and reclaim a Chicago in which our beloved trans sisters of color can flourish.” And with that lies the hope that Gutierrez and others in the CTC hope to channel in the visualization of Malary’s impact and legacy.
Chicago Therapy Collective is observing the Trans Day of Remembrance the entire week, with The Afterglow taking place Saturday, Nov. 23, 9-10:30 p.m. at Bramble Arts Loft; and the Healing and Wellness Series happening Sunday, Nov. 24, 1:30-4 p.m. at Cheetah Gym.