An Open Letter to Brianna Ghey

You should be 17 now, planning for your future. Maybe you would have gone on to university, college, the trades, or some other type of education. Maybe you would have gone right into the workforce. Your life was just beginning – with endless possibilities.

Instead, your life was cut short by a horrific transphobic act of violence. And even in your death, that transphobic violence continues. 

In the UK, a person needs to be 18, diagnosed with gender dysphoria, and have been living in their affirmed gender for at least two years in order to get a Gender Recognition Certificate. The certificate, which updates a person's birth certificate, also ensures they have the correct gender marker on their death certificate. Since you were only 16 when you were murdered, you were denied dignity and full recognition, even in your death.

More than that, you didn’t die because of “poor mental health”, as some politicians would like to claim. You died from transphobia, even though many try to claim that anti-trans hate was not a factor in your murder. They claim it’s not transphobia – despite the fact that your murderers used anti-trans slurs, and as feminist appropriating radical transphobes verbally abused your family and headteacher. They claim it’s not transphobia, despite the fact that far too many people shared your deadname. They claim it’s not transphobia, even though newspapers turned your murder into a sensational headline – right next to the numerous anti-trans articles they have been publishing for years. 

After the people who murdered you were convicted, I saw many people claiming that this was “justice”. That you can rest in peace. This is our instinct as people – when something wrong happens, we look for the people immediately responsible, we prosecute them, and then we move on. But far too often, we fail to see the roots of the system that allowed the violence to take place – and the fact that violence will continue to happen as long as these systems go unchecked. 

If we were to truly have “justice”, then everyone who played a role in your death would be held responsible. Media, government, religion, and school systems all had a role to play in contributing to the growing culture of anti-trans hate and violence. Hate is taught – when media outlets continually publish harmful misinformation and stereotypes, when governments pass anti-trans legislation, when religion dehumanizes trans people, and when school systems turn away while bullying runs rampant. 

True “justice” would be safety for all trans people, so that no one has to endure what you did. True “justice” means that we wouldn’t have to recognize the Trans Day of Remembrance every year. True “justice” means you would still be alive, wondering what you were going to do with your bright future. 

So no – we don’t have justice. And unfortunately, you won’t be able to rest in peace – not as long as people continue to deny you dignity or basic respect. 

But we can remember you, and the type of person you were. Your parents described you as someone who was fearless and beautiful. Your friends said that you helped younger trans girls legally and safely access hormone replacement therapy. 

Your legacy will live on in the family and friends that you loved, and in the support and mentorship you offered to those girls. Your legacy will live on in those of us who will continue to fight for trans rights and trans liberation. 

So Brianna, rest in power, while the rest of us work for justice.