Elysium Gardens,  November 18, 2007 - On Tuesday, November 20th, Elysium Gardens, with the support of the Transgender Resource Center, will host Second Life's first service held in memory of victims of violence directed against the transgendered. Unlike traditional Transgender Day of Remembrance services, the Elysium Gardens service will be observed as an all-day event running from midnight to midnight (PST) and is designed to offer residents of Second Life from around the world access to a beautiful yet solemn location to honor victims of anti-transgender violence. Also unlike traditional Transgender Day of Remembrance services, Elysium Gardens will use this unique opportunity and medium to honor victims of a different kind of violence--the prejudice that leads many transgendered individuals to end their own lives.

The service itself will consist of Second Life residents and their allies sharing their personal stories and memories of friends, loved ones, and members of the community who were victims of hate crimes or who committed suicide. Also included will be personal stories from law enforcement officials and service providers who are familiar with such tragic events including the refusal of emergency services from healthcare providers and medical personal because of bias against the transgendered. The service will be held at Elysium Gardens' new Transgender Suicide Memorial located at http://slurl.com/secondlife/Elysium%20Gardens/197/194/22

In addition, candlelight ceremonies will be held at Noon (PST) and 7:00PM (PST) and presided by Random Demina of the LGBT Alliance and Jani Myriam of the Transgender Resource Center, respectively. Additional events to be announced.

The Transgender Day of Remembrance began nine years ago to honor Rita Hester, a transgender woman who was murdered on November 28, 1998. The annual event is designed to raise public awareness of hate crimes perpetrated against transgendered individuals and to encourage people to be allies of the transgender community. For more information about Day of Remembrance visit http://www.rememberingourdead.org/day/

ABOUT ELYSIUM GARDENS - Elysium Gardens is Second Life's first full region (simulator) devoted to providing Second Life's expansive transgender community with a location devoted to its specific needs. In contrast to most other transgender focused locations in Second Life which tend toward overt expressions of sexuality, Elysium Gardens strives to offer a mature and respectful alternative within Second Life. For more information about Elysium Gardens contact Gwen Collins in-world or via email at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

ABOUT THE TRANSGENDER RESOURCE CENTER - The The Transgender Resource Center, located in Pavonia at http://slurl.com/secondlife/Pavonia/25/40/101, provides Second Life residents with quality information and discussion relevant to gender identity issues both within Second Life and beyond. For more information about the Transgender Resource Center in Second Life contact Jani Myriam in-world or via email at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or phone at 01-757-276-2236.

For more information about the Transgender Day of Remembrance service in Second Life contact Random Demina in-world or via email at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

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