Amnesty International USA

[A] WHEREAS Amnesty International has a long history of work promoting the rights of LGBT people and combating human rights violations based on sexual orientation and/or gender identity;

[B] WHEREAS around the world, transgender people are targeted for a range of violations to their physical and mental integrity, including extrajudicial killing, torture, forced disappearances, arbitrary arrest, police brutality and intimidation and various forms of discrimination. The rights of people who identify as transgender or who are perceived to be transgender are also violated in terms of access to health, education and housing;

[C] WHEREAS Amnesty International has documented human rights abuses committed against transgender people in many countries including Honduras, Guatemala, Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, France, Mexico, Nepal, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United States and Venezuela;

[D] WHEREAS Amnesty International has documented instances where the state either refuses to investigate and/or punish perpetrators of such violations or is complicit in or responsible for the violations themselves;

[E] WHEREAS in 1998, the first Transgender Day of Remembrance was observed in honor of Rita Hester, a transgender woman murdered in San Francisco;

[F] WHEREAS every year, human rights activists around the globe continue to mark November 20th to honor those killed or abused based on their gender identity;

[G] THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that AIUSA’s Board of Directors annually issue a statement on the Transgender Day of Remembrance calling for an end to human rights violations committed against people based on their gender identity; and

[H] THEREFORE BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that AIUSA encourages its staff and activists to make connections with local organizations dedicated to transgender rights to assist in their efforts on the Transgender Day of Remembrance (20 November), or to organize their own events to draw attention to human rights abuses against transgender people. That AIUSA’s Outfront Program and Steering Committee provide recommendations of organizations dedicated to transgender rights to assist AIUSA staff & activists in their efforts.