My wife and I went to a candlelight vigil last night that was held in Houston for the #enby #Oklahoma 16yr old, #NexBenedict .
I had mixed emotions about going. Wasn't sure if I should or shouldn't go. I mean... Would it make a difference? "It" being the vigil itself but also my presence there as well I guess. What could a candlelight vigil from a blue dot in a deeply red state possibly do to affect change for #trans citizens in deeply red Oklahoma?
But on the other hand, there needs to be awareness and it starts with people being present, showing up and making their voices heard. Change is desperately needed to end the stream of political and physical attacks on trans people by individuals, society and governments.
And so my wife and I went.
But I came away from it feeling somewhat....
icky.
I don't like that it was more of a political rally and not a method for honoring and lifting up the the short-lived life of Nex. I think the message of trans rights could have been woven in more subtly while putting to the forefront the fact that a child lost their life entirely and solely because they were trans.
I don't know. Maybe that's the way candlelight vigils for trans deaths are.