Transgender advocates in Orlando will hold a vigil tonight in tandem with other cities to encourage tolerance. That’s after Leelah Alcorn, a transgender teenager in Ohio committed suicide and left a note asking for an end to inequality.
Gina Duncan is the Transgender Inclusion Director for Equality Florida. She says, “people still see the transgender community as a very sensationalized, flamboyant community that they find a difficult time embracing.”
Duncan is working to create leadership and business opportunities for transgender Floridians.
She estimates 41% of transgender people commit suicide.
Last August, the Orlando city council unanimously approved an ordinance to ban discrimination against transgender people.