Thousands of transgender people and their allies took to the streets of Chicago on March 30 in a powerful celebration of the trans community and call to action amid growing attacks on its rights.
The Rally for Trans Visibility was organized by Trans Up Front Illinois, a new group that formed earlier this year to protest pauses on gender-affirming care for youth at medical providers like Lurie Children’s Hospital. The event was a precursor to Transgender Day of Visibility on March 31 and included a rally at federal plaza followed by a protest march in the streets.
“This rally is a response to the relentless attacks on trans rights,” said Asher McMaher, executive director of Trans Up Front. “We are calling out those in power and demanding accountability. Our rights will not be stripped away.”
The rally came together thanks to a coalition of more than 50 local and national organizations and featured more than a dozen speakers, from elected officials and longtime activists to parents and trans youth who shared personal stories about how these attacks have affected them.
President Donald Trump’s administration has unleashed a fury of anti-trans executive orders attempting to erase trans people from public life, prevent trans-affirming healthcare, ban transgender people from the military and limit trans participation in sports. Meanwhile, Republican-led states continue to push anti-trans legislation fueling such discrimination.
Channyn Lynne Parker, CEO of Brave Space Alliance, warned the rally’s crowd that kinds of attacks will not stop with trans people.
“Trans people were the first course of attacks, but not the last. Trans people were only the appetizer,” Parker said. “Do not think for one minute that you being cisgender will save you? You are on the menu.”
State Rep. Kelly Cassidy (14th District) had a similar message for cisgender allies, calling on more of them within the LGBTQ+ community to step up in the fight for transgender rights.
“When we passed marriage equality, I used to say at the celebrations that y’all don’t get to take your wedding cake and go home,” Cassidy said. “And I have seen over the years, my cis queer siblings not show up. [But] I am so fucking proud of you for being here.”
Cassidy also criticized Democrats who have fallen in line with some of the Trump administration’s policies, such as those who voted to confirm many of Trump’s appointees or joined Republicans in scapegoating the trans community in the wake of the election.
“If you don’t have the spine for this fight, sit the fuck down,” Cassidy said. “Take all the seats, because there are people in this crowd who can do this job better.”
Zahara Basset, CEO of Life is work, called on people to channel their outrage and the energy of the rally into midterm elections, making sure that pro-trans candidates are elected up and down the ballot—even in rural areas.
“Visibility alone is not enough. We need housing, health care, jobs that pay living wages and safety in our homes, schools, workplaces and streets,” Bassett said. “So we want to make sure that we are building power.”
Commissioner Precious Brady-Davis, who sits on Metropolitan Water Reclamation District board and is the first Black trans woman elected in Cook County, evoked transgender ancestors like Sylvia Rivera, Marsha P. Johnson and the indigenous two-spirit people who lived here before colonization.
“I have news for President Donald Trump: We aren’t going anywhere,” Brady-Davis said. “Our community was here long before you, and we will be here long after you.”
Tanya, a mother of a transgender son who did not share her last name to protect her family, gave an emotional speech about the challenges faced by transgender youth in this country.
“Seeing your child want to die under the weight of rejection and cruelty is the hardest thing in the world,” Tanya said. “But he is still here, and he is thriving.”
Tanya also urged people to advocate for laws protecting trans children in schools and their access to life-saving gender-affirming health care.
“This isn’t just about equality, it’s about humanity,” Tanya said.
Photos by Jake Wittich
