A Message from EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows for 2023 Transgender Day of Remembrance

Today is Transgender Day of Remembrance, a somber occasion to honor the lives lost to anti‑transgender violence and confront the painful reality of continuing hostility and threats to the safety of transgender individuals. Only one year ago yesterday, a gunman opened fire at Club Q in Colorado Springs and murdered five people, two of whom were transgender, and injured many others. That tragic shooting occurred just hours before last year’s observance of Transgender Day of Remembrance.

The Human Rights Campaign reports that so far in 2023, at least 25 transgender and gender non-conforming people have been killed. Nearly 90% of those victims were people of color and approximately 50% were Black transgender women.

At the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), we stand against hate and violence in all its forms. Our commitment to protecting LGBTQI+ applicants and workers from unlawful discrimination is both longstanding and steadfast.

As reflected in the EEOC’s Strategic Enforcement Plan, the Commission’s enforcement priorities include addressing bias and hatred directed against LGBTQI+ individuals. The Strategic Enforcement Plan also re-affirmed the Commission’s commitment to protecting vulnerable and underserved workers and expanded that category to include LGBTQI+ individuals.  In doing so, it recognized that LGBTQI+ workers historically had been underserved and may still be unaware of their rights or reluctant to exercise those rights due to fear of retaliation.

If you or someone you know has experienced discrimination at work or in the job application process because they are transgender—or for any other legally prohibited reason—please visit our webpage about How to File a Charge of Employment Discrimination and note the time limits for filing a charge.

Together, we can fully realize America’s shared commitment to equality and justice for all.  Transgender Day of Remembrance is a somber reminder of the urgency of that cause.

Charlotte A. Burrows (she/her/hers)

Chair

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission