San José State students, faculty, local residents and alumni came together Saturday night at the Student Union Theater to celebrate Trans Awareness Night hosted by Silicon Valley Pride.
Silicon Valley Pride is an organization that has been celebrating LGBTQ+ rights since 1975.
Nov. 30 is a day of significance because it is in memory of transgender people who lost their lives to violence, according to the Glaad website.
The night was packed with poets, stand-up comedians, and dance ensembles by SJSU alumni.
Susan Ellenberg, member of the County of Santa Clara Board of Supervisors, kicked off the event with a recognition of SJSU’s community and its commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion.
“It truly is an honor to be here,” Ellenberg said. “It’s an honor to be here celebrating trans lives, trans joy and sharing the community with all of you. There is nothing more beautiful than human beings who are living their truest, most authentic lives.”
Chief Marketing Officer for Silicon Valley Pride and SJSU alumnus Saldy Suriben said the organization has hosted multiple events dedicated to LGBTQ+ pride, including Silicon Valley Pride Night, the Pride Health Fair, Drag Bingo and Pride Block Party.
He said the nonprofit organization held event to support and shed light on the transgender community.
“The reason I joined Silicon Valley Pride is because I wanted to give back to the community,” Suriben said. “Also, I have a passion in event planning and I have a passion for bringing authenticity and supporting the local LGBTQ+ community here.”
She said 35% of transgender youth live in states that have passed bans on gender-affirming care according to a website from UCLA School of Law. Some states, such as Oklahoma, Texas and South Carolina have considered bans on gender-affirming care up to the age of 26, according to the same website.
She said in the past decade, over 310 transgender and gender non-conforming people have lost their lives to violence, and one-third of whom were killed in the past three years, according to the same source.
In 2022, 80% of victims were people of color and 50% were black transgender women, according to the same website
SJSU President Cynthia Teniente-Matson also attended the event and said she recognizes the event as a way of celebrating the SJSU community, the SJSU student body, faculty and staff and anyone who comes to San José State.
“It’s gatherings like this where we can come together and share experiences to build an environment where everyone is welcome and everyone feels seen, heard and supported,” she said.
She said she is proud of the community for not only embracing people who are transgender, but for the LGBTQ+ community as a whole.
SJSU alumna Danni Villalobos said her return to SJSU was sentimental and she embraced the opportunity to spread awareness while entertaining the local crowd.
“I do a lot of things with the community now. One of the things we helped plan today was the showcase,” Villalobos said. “I used to perform here at SJSU. I was part of the LGBTQ+ group on campus. It was known as QTIP. It definitely hits home.”
She said bringing the community together and bringing people of different genders and identities together in one place, people can empower and inspire the next generation of students to be more educated about diversity, equity and inclusion.
“I think (being transgender) means that I definitely live a life that people aren’t going to understand,” Villalobos said. “There’s always going to be people that don’t know where I come from and the choices I make. But there are people that are going to understand who I am and what I’m about.”
She said finding the silver lining in terms of her purpose involves finding her identity and that’s why there are LGBTQ+ communities, pride days and trans awareness days to convey a message.
She said she understands some people don’t have the opportunity to speak out for the community and has made it her intention to speak out for those who don’t have the same privilege.
“Keep fighting for what you believe in and keep being authentic and true to yourself, because at the end of the day you will have a community backing you up,” Villalobos said.
Sera Fernando, SJSU alumna, said it’s great to see a transgender awareness night and celebrate trans-awareness week at SJSU.
Fernando said she graduated from SJSU in 2008 and currently serves as the Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion officer for Silicon Valley Pride.
“In terms of me self-identifying as a transgender Filipino woman, my background is really a lived experience,” Fernando said.
“I came out around 10 years ago. For me, trans awareness is about amplifying and uplifting the stories and the challenges and barriers that transgender folks face as well as (honoring) all the trans lives lost to anti-trans sentiment rhetoric and bias,” she said.
Fernando said the collective goal of the event is not just to celebrate transgender joy, but also to be aware that lives of transgender folks are not all rainbows and butterflies.
“If we really want to create a space that’s safe and inclusive for everybody, we really have to be intentional and think about intersectionality, especially the transgender community,” Fernando said.
She said celebrating the transgender community is one step, but this is one of many events and many that should be recognized.
“I’m blessed to have the opportunity to serve the community in all sorts of facets,” Fernando said. “My statement to the transgender students at San José State is that you belong, you are loved.”
