Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV) is a day of awareness and commemoration of transgender and gender non-conforming people.
While the annual observation, held on March 31, is a time for celebration and support, today, it marks a time when community members are fighting for their basic right to exist.
Since January, with the onset of President Donald Trump taking office, attacks on the LGBTQ+ community have been public and persistent.
Hours after his inauguration on Jan. 20, Trump signed a government recognizing only two sexes, male and female, effectively removing references to trans people from government websites, including sites for the Stonewall National Monument in New York.
Today and every year on March 31, we observe Transgender Day of Visibility.
— WNBA (@WNBA) March 31, 2025
We honor the strength, courage, and resilience of transgender people and the transgender community.
We see you, we stand with you, and we will continue to support you. 🩵🩷 pic.twitter.com/WAEZ7xLCgl
From ending federal support for gender-affirming care for minors and banning trans girls from school sports to trying to bar transgender troops from serving in the military, it’s clear the coming years will be a fight for the community and it’s allies.
The American Civil Liberties Union is currently tracking 527 anti-LGBTQ+ bills nationwide. According to data from a 2022 research study by UCLA’s Williams Institute, there are over 1.6 million adults who identify as transgender in the US.
Rachel Crandall Crocker, a psychologist and executive director of the nonprofit group Transgender Michigan, created the TDOV initiative in 2010.
"It really is amazing how far it has come," she told NPR last year. "I wasn't expecting to start an international movement."
"I wanted a day that we could focus on the living," Crandall-Crocker said. "And where we could have rallies all as one community all the way around the world."
Despite the heated political climate on transgender and LGBTQ+ issues, many are only using the obstacles as fuel for fire in the fight for change.
Efforts to erase trans people will not be successsful. Today is a day for visibility of this community that's under fierce attack.https://t.co/guZDOIkkG9 #TransDayOfVisibility
— Rachel Barnhart (@rachbarnhart) March 31, 2025
Today is Transgender Day of Visibility.
— 💜Sarah💜| ✡️🏳️⚧️ (@SarahIsAwsm) March 31, 2025
My existence isn't political, but politicians love to talk about it.
My government is becoming increasingly hostile to the existence of people like me, but I am here, I am alive.
I'm not trying to "end gender", I just want to live. 🏳️⚧️
The protest, led by the advocacy group Trans Up Front Illinois in partnership with Indivisible Chicago, took place the day before Trans Day of Visibility, which is recognized by LGBTQ+ advocates Monday.https://t.co/OFcd2L8KRH
— Chicago Tribune (@chicagotribune) March 31, 2025
“This day should also remind people that ‘visible’ does not mean ‘equal,’" said Nova Bright, head of internal training, learning, and development at The Trevor Project to USA Today.
“We must continue working toward a country full of people that understands transgender people are our neighbors, our family members, and our friends; trans people want to simply be able to go about their daily lives, just like anyone else.”
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