Advocates held day of remembrance to raise awareness of suicides and murders in the transgender community

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Local advocates are working to raise awareness about the high rates of suicide and hate crimes in the transgender community.

People gathered at the Unitarian Universalist Church in northeast Fresno Saturday for the 10th annual "Transgender Day of Remembrance." It included a resource fair and a keynote speaker who talked about common struggles and misperceptions. There was also a memorial and reading of the names of each transgender person who died this year. "What we'd like to do here is put a face to the issue and bring humanity to the cause and let people know that, hey, we're just people and we want to live our lives and be our authentic selves just like anybody else would," said Zoyer Zyndel, transgender community activist.

Organizers said there have been about 100 transgender suicides and murders reported worldwide this year. They also said the actual number is likely much higher.