| abstract | - Trans-bashing is the act of victimizing a person physically, sexually, or verbally because they are transgendered or transsexual. Unlike gay bashing, it is committed because of the target's actual or perceived gender identity, not sexual orientation. The term has also been applied to hate speech directed at transgender people and at depictions of transgender people in the media that reinforce negative stereotypes about them. Discrimination, including physical or sexual violence against trans people due to transphobia or homophobia, is a common occurrence for trans people. Hate crimes against trans people are common even recently, and "in some instances, inaction by police or other government officials leads to the untimely deaths of transgender victims." The most famous incident was the December 30, 1993 rape and murder of Brandon Teena, a young transman who was raped and murdered by his male friends after they found out he had female genitalia. The story was captured in the film Boys Don't Cry, which earned Hilary Swank the Academy Award for best actress. In Seattle's gay village of Capitol Hill, there is some evidence of an increase in incidents of trans-bashing over the past two years.
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