Full house in support of Trans Day of Visibility

No fewer than 350 people came together at the Rotary Centre for the Arts Friday evening to commemorate the annual International Trans Day of Visibility in Downtown Kelowna.

This year’s events were spearheaded by a group of young trans campaigners in the city, who organized with the support of a coalition of local trans and 2sLGBTIQ+ (Two Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans, Intersex, and Queer) groups and community members.

Among these organizers was Jade Walters, founder and co-director of the Okanagan Gender Identity Group, who led the efforts to organize this monumental event.

“There is a lot going on politically right now, I'm sure I don't need to mention anything about that,” Walters told Kelowna10.

“But I feel like it would be nice to offer a counterpoint to that by amplifying the things that trans people really love and makes them happy.”

The event showcased 16 live performers, from the debut of Walter’s punk band Svengali to a multitude of other drag artists, musicians, poets, and comedians.

In addition to this, booths were set up outside of the stage area for trans artists and artisans to sell their wares.

Near the end of the performances, there was a quick evacuation due to a fire alarm, but in the spirit of resilience, the show carried on.

“The community has certainly been more lively out in Kelowna, there's more drag events, more trans events,” she explained. “And just in general, more queerness out there, which is awesome.”

To kick off the performances, Walters gave a speech on DIY ethic, a practice very common in civil rights activism and punk subcultures.

The speech highlighted the importance of mutual aid, and building strong community, and while it may be tempting to move somewhere with an already flourishing queer community like Vancouver, it’s up to us to build that here.

At the end of the night, over $2,000 was raised from donations from visitors.

“The reality of things are, there are trans people out here thriving, living their lives,” Walters explained. “They're your grocery store clerks, they're your neighbours, they are hopefully your friends.”