By ABBY BRAVO
News Editor
Saint Rose Identity hosted a vigil on Dec. 8 to remember the victims of the Club Q shooting in Colorado Springs last month as well as other trans lives lost over the past year.
The tragic shooting at LGBTQ+ nightclub Club Q occurred on the night of Nov. 19 into Nov. 20, which is Transgender Day of Remembrance. The vigil was a day to memorialize all who have lost their lives to transphobic attacks and hate towards the transgender community.
During the service, Identity President Aubrey Bogart, Secretary Laura Knowlton and PR Chair Kyle McClendon read out names of dozens of transgender and non-binary people who lost their lives due to transphobia between this year’s Transgender Day of Remembrance and last year’s.
There were cards on seats and cards on the ground in a circle around the center display of all of the victims that they read out. Students were able to scan a QR code on the cards that would take them to a website that told that specific person’s story.
After reading all of the victims that lost their lives and a long solemn pause, the focus was drawn to the club Q victims: Kelly Loving, Daniel Aston, Derrick Rump, Ashley Paugh, and Raymond Green Vance.
“It’s mainly concerning that this tragedy happened on Trans Remembrance Day. Club Q was a safe space for people to go,” said student Amy Romat.
The gunman at Club Q was taken down by Richard Fierro, an army veteran, and a trans woman who stepped on the gunman with her high heels after Fierro had disarmed him, amongst many other club patrons.
Bogart read an essay by Samantha Allen titled, “Hate Is No Match For A High Heel,” which was inspired by these heroic patrons.
An excerpt from the essay read by Bogart said, “I can think of no greater testament to American greatness than this: that in the face of death, an Army veteran and a bar full of queer and trans people teamed up to fight.” She continued with, “even as presumable strangers, their commitment to each other was more powerful than any bullet could ever be.”
Bogart encouraged a discussion towards the end of the service where people were able to talk about their feelings about these recent events.
“There are so many people who are transgender or non-binary, including myself, and people that I care about,” said Romat during this time. They went on to mention many of the alarming things about these deaths such as the gruesome ways these victims’ bodies were found; in garbage cans, on the streets, or with multiple gunshot wounds. They also mention the reality that many of the people killed were in their 20s.
“With both myself and my older sibling being in the age range of people that were killed due to this hate is terrifying,” said Romat in an email after the event. “I am not only scared because I was assigned female at birth but now I am a target because of the way I identify. I am frightened for my future.”
“We’ll have lived through this in-between time, the time when it’s as ugly and horrifying and as full of despair as it could be,” said Joan Horgan, director of spiritual life.
She went on to talk about a world where it is unbelievable to young people that others could be treated this way. “The in-between time is hard, and you deserve places where you can feel safe, where you can be called by the right pronouns and you can exhale and be in your own skin,” she said.
While many students felt similarly to Romat, the open discussion took a turn as many students began to voice their thankfulness to have a safe space on campus both by the Identity club and the Interfaith Sanctuary where the service was held.
“It makes me grateful for the community that we have here in Albany,” said Bogart. “I couldn’t even imagine if a safe space here was violated in such a violent and aggressive manner.”
After speaking of their fears and heartache from these tragedies, student Jazzy Dunleavy said, “there really is no better feeling than knowing that here on this campus we are safe and free to be who we are.”
