Several hundred people waving transgender pride flags and signs of support marched through downtown Chicago on April 4, led by chants of “My rights are your rights; trans rights are human rights.”
The march followed Trans Up Front Illinois’ Rally for Trans Visibility in Federal Plaza, bringing together activists, politicians, nonprofit leaders and community members in honor of Transgender Day of Visibility, which is observed annually on March 31 to celebrate the lives and contributions of transgender people.
Speakers during the rally emphasized that visibility alone is not enough, calling for sustained, year-round support through policy change, community organizing and tangible resources, such as access to health care, housing and mental health services.
“It is my goal in life that every trans youth grows up to be the trans adult they’re meant to be,” said Asher McMaher, founder and executive director of Trans Up Front, which recently marked its one-year anniversary at its Light the Way Soiree.
Jae Rice, director of communications for Life is Work, challenged attendees to move beyond performative alliances and take more active roles in supporting trans communities.
“Allyship isn’t enough anymore. I need you all to evolve into mitigators and reallocators,” Rice said, urging attendees to use their privilege to reduce harm and support trans people in more tangible ways.
Stephanie Skora, director of development and strategic priorities at the Chicago Therapy Collective, emphasized the need for material resources to meet the community’s needs.
She encouraged attendees to contribute time, money and services to support trans people, pointing to ongoing needs for mental health care, housing and other essential services.
“You can’t eat visibility,” Skora said. “We need resources. We need support.”
Ald. Lamont Robinson (4th Ward), chair of the Chicago City Council’s LGBTQ+ Caucus, highlighted the importance of political representation and civic engagement in protecting trans rights.
“We have to make sure that we have representatives that care and that show up and that will speak truth to power,” Robinson said.
Other elected officials in attendance included Alds. Maria Hadden (49th Ward) and Andre Vasquez (40th Ward); Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, who recently won the Democratic primary in Illinois’ 9th Congressional District; and Drake Warren, who recently won a primary that poised him to become the next Cook County commissioner for the 10th District.
Antonio King, the city’s newly appointed director of LGBTQ+ affairs, also attended.
Trans Up Front Illinois organizers and speakers pointed to recent rollbacks in gender-affirming care and ongoing political attacks on trans rights as driving the urgency behind the rally, emphasizing that many trans people—particularly youth—continue to face barriers to essential services.
Channyn Lynne Parker, CEO of Equality Illinois, warned that attacks on trans rights are part of a broader rollback affecting multiple communities.
“Trans people are only the appetizer—you are on the menu,” Parker said. “Your rights are bound into my rights.”
