By Jack Roberts – Campus Reform
While many Americans will celebrate Easter this Sunday, some institutions around the country will commemorate March 31 as “Transgender Day of Visibility.”
On March 1, the Chancellor’s Committee for the Status of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer People at the University of Illinois Chicago announced it would be celebrating the progressive holiday. “[Transgender Day of Visibility] is dedicated to celebrating transgender people and raising awareness of the work that is still needed for trans equality,” the group’s message states.
The committee also writes that “[n]ot using a trans person’s name or pronouns is another form of disrespect against transgender people.” As such, the group informs the university community that “[if] you encounter someone not using a trans person’s name or pronouns, check in with the trans person, disrupt communication and speak up.”
Similarly, the Office of the President for the University of Massachusetts System has also proclaimed this Sunday to be Transgender Day of Visibility.
”Held annually on March 31, Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV) is a time to celebrate transgender and non-binary people around the globe and acknowledge the determination it takes to live openly and authentically,” states the web page of UMass President Marty Meehan, a former Democrat congressman.
The president’s office also features “Ways to Support the Transgender Community,” which include an extensive list of commonly used pronouns, in addition to a “Glossary of Transgender Terms” compiled by the far-left LGBT nonprofit, GLAAD.
Not all schools who will be recognizing Transgender Day of Visibility are confined to liberal states.
The University of Kentucky College of Public Health has announced that it also intends to “celebrate and show support for the lives and contributions of trans people and uplift the voices of those in the community” on March 31.
Universities are not alone in embracing transgenderism on Easter either.
On March 19, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors in Virginia voted 9-0 to declare March 31 as “Transgender Visibility Day.”
”I’m just very happy that we’re recognizing a community that has too been often pushed into the shadows, and celebrating yet another community within our diverse tapestry here in Fairfax County,” Supervisor Jimmy Bierman remarked after reading the proclamation at a board meeting. “We really are one Fairfax and we want to make sure that everybody who’s a part of our community feels welcome, feels loved, and feels empowered.”
The supervisors also yielded time during the meeting to hear some words from Emma Chattin, a transgender activist and “Senior Pastor” at the Metropolitan Community Church of Northern Virginia. All nine Democrat supervisors also posed for photos with Chattin, with the lone Republican board member absent from the meeting.
As the primary governing body of the county, the board of supervisors plays a major role in guiding educational policy for public education.
Fairfax County Public Schools’ website lists numerous resources for the “LGBTQIA+ school community.” The Fairfax County School Board formally declared June as “Pride Month” in 2021 and passed a resolution in 2020 to designate October as “LGBTQ History Month.”
One of the most affluent counties in the nation, Fairfax County has become a Democrat stronghold after decades of Republican dominance.
Last year, U. S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona affirmed his support for the occasion.
”On Transgender Day of Visibility and every day, we must show transgender students that we see them and that we support them,” he said. “We know many transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming students face challenges that can impact their mental health and their ability to thrive in school—not because of who they are, but because of the hostility directed at them.”