Date: Mon, 17 Mar 1997 13:44:03 -0500 From: Riki Anne Wilchins Subject: VIGIL AT CHANELLE PICKETT MURDER TRIAL MEDIA ADVISORY - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Nancy Nangeroni Transexual Menace/Boston nrn@gendertalk.com (617)497-6928 VIGIL AT CHANELLE PICKETT MURDER TRIAL ====================================== [Cambridge, MA - February 14, 1997] ON THURSDAY morning, February 27, the Middlesex Superior Courthouse in Cambridge will be the scene of another murder trial by transgender and queer activists. Activists from around the Boston area will stage a quite demonstration in support of murder victim Chanelle Pickett, found dead of strangulation in Watertown onNovember 20, 1995. The victim was found in the apartment of defendant William Palmer. The vigil is being organized by the Remember Chanelle Committee, a group of local activists united by their outrage over the murder and biased press coverage. Working closely with the will be the local chapter of The Transexual Menace. The planned action follows the vigil held in December 1995 at the Arlington Street Church in Boston, which was attended by 250 people, and culminated in a candlelight march to the State House. Defendent William Palmer, at last report, continues to deny that he is an "admirer" of pre-op transsexuals, despite the promised testimony of several persons who know him as a frequenter of Boston's TS pick-up spots. Says Transexual Menace spokesperson andGenderTalk radio (WMBR-FM) host Nancy Nangeroni "Though we look forward to seeing justice done," continueds Nancy Nangeroni, "we're not there to vilify the murderer. Rather, we want to highlight the social conditions that foster such crimes against those who transgress the unwritten rules of gender." WHERE: Middlesex Superior Courthouse Thorndyke Street at Third street Cambridge, MA WHEN: Vigil begins at 8:30 AM. ADDITIONAL CONTACT: Robb Johnson, Victim Advocate Fenway Comm Ctr Victim Recovery Program RJohnson@fchc.org (617)267-0900 x308 ### "A HOMOSEXUAL IS MURDERED EVERY 3 DAYS..." ========================================== [Brazil - February 11, 1997] THE INTERNATIONAL Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) and Grupo Gay de Bahia (GGB) released a report today detailing the ongoing persecution of Gays, Lesbians, and Transvestites in Brazil. In 1996, the report documents 126 murders of gay, lesbians, and transvestites due to their sexual orientation. In much of South America, the term "transvestite" includes transexuals. Said Luiz Mott, author of the report, "Behind its international reputation for welcoming sexual diversity, Brazil hides a shocking secret: a homosexual is murdered every 3 days." ### "TODAY WE ARE ALL TRANSVESTITES" ================================ [Buenos Aires, Arg - Febrruary 11, 1997] TRANSGENDER ACTIVISTS demonstrated today at the Buenos Aires Justice Palace, denouncing the systematic human rights violations against transvestites by the government. 30 transvestite, lesbian, gay and bisexual activists called for an anti-transphobia campaign aimed at the general public, to involve all citizens in the defense of freedom to choose one1s sexual/gender expression. The Palace's main door was blocked by life- sized dolls carrying the names of some of the 64 transvestites murdered by police in the last year. Said Luciana Kerner, of the Young Gay and Lesbians' Group, "When the Israeli Embassy... was bombed, we all became Jews... in the same way, today gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and heterosexuals, we are all transvestites." ### (c) 1996 InYourFace An on-line, news-only service for gender activism. When re-posting, please credit InYourFace.