by MAAN ALHMIDI

When Julie Berman came up to the open mic at the trans day of remembrance event on Nov. 20, 2017, she delivered a speech about transphobia in Toronto. She talked about a trans friend of hers that was murdered.

On Sunday, a little over two years later, the trans woman and activist was assaulted and murdered.

“It’s really heartbreaking ... the same thing that she was trying to be vocal about happened to her,” said Davina Hader, a friend of the victim and a member of The 519, an organization that advocates for the inclusion of LGBTQ communities’ members and provides services for them.

Ms. Berman had asked her friend, who was filming the vigil in 2017, not to release the clip online. “I have that still, and I was thinking about releasing [the video],” Ms. Hader said.

Toronto police said they found Ms. Berman on Sunday suffering from head injuries in a residence in Toronto’s Brunswick Avenue and Harbord Street area. She was transported to hospital and pronounced dead. Police have charged Colin Harnack, 29, of Toronto, with second-degree murder. Read more via Globe and Mail