With battery-powered candles illuminating their faces, more than a dozen LGBTQ+ community members walked through Northalsted to honor the lives of transgender people who have died.
The ceremony—led by the Second City Sisters in recognition of Transgender Day of Remembrance—began with a blessing at the Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., before the group made the candlelit walk south to Belmont Avenue and back.
The sisters guided the procession in full regalia, reminding attendees that remembrance and grief can be communal acts of love rather than isolation.
Sister Auntie Gayme, of the Sisters’ two new co-mistresses of ritual, helped with the evening.
“We need to just grieve happily together and not be fragile about it,” she said. “There’s nothing weak or sad in crying or in missing someone, and right now, there’s a lot of pressure for us to be strong. I want us to remember that mourning those we’ve lost is a form of strength.”
A central feature of the vigil was the Sisters’ veil of remembrance, a tradition meant to carry community members’ grief forward rather than pack it away. Attendees were invited to write names, messages or memories on the fabric veil before the Sisters wore it throughout the neighborhood march
The veil was decorated with a crown of flowers, resembling the signature of “trancestor” Marsha P. Johnson.
“This veil isn’t just going to go in a drawer,” Sister Auntie Gayme said. “This is something that we bring back out to Chicago… if they have something they need to get out. I want to be here for them and put on my veil to provide comfort.”
Among those who participated in the ceremony was Humboldt Park resident Ethan Vazquez, who said he attended to be in community with Chicago’s trans community and show solidarity with trans people facing escalating violence in Puerto Rico.
“I’m Puerto Rican, and I wanted to be here in place of those who can’t,” Vazquez said. “More than ever—especially in this administration—it’s important that we show we’re still here and that the things happening to us aren’t going to go unseen.”
Vazquez added that resilience is a strong component of Trans Day of Remembrance.
“We ain’t going nowhere,” he said. “We’ve been here. We will be here. We’re pretty good at making it through the centuries.”
Flynn Crawford also attended to show support.
“I’m out here to support the dolls,” Crawford said. “It’s my life’s work.”
For Crawford, the event’s public visibility mattered just as much as the remembrance itself.
“It’s critical… just to be visible in public, celebrating people we love that are here and that are gone,” Crawford said.
The walk concluded where it began, returning to the Center on Halsted for closing remarks from the Sisters. Earlier during the blessing, Sister Maria Spanakopita described the purpose of showing up on a day of remembrance.
“I’m here because their stories matter,” she said. “I’m here because their absence is felt, and I’m here because I believe in standing with the trans community, especially when the world feels heavy.”