Life is getting more difficult for trans people living in Alberta, advocates say
Global News
Growing up in rural Alberta, and affirming her identity as a trans woman, sent Anna Murphy on a path that eventually led her back to Calgary.
It’s been two weeks of care and recovery for Anna Murphy as she deals with the fact that she is still here.
“I have been navigating what it is to have survived,” says Murphy. “What it is to now have to live a life I was at peace ending.”
Murphy has dedicated her life to making the world more inclusive. Growing up in rural Alberta, and affirming her identity as a trans woman, sent her on a path that eventually led her back to Calgary, where she says she never went in search of the spotlight, but rather stood up for what she believes is right.
That work made her a hero to many, but also the target for online trolls.
“It doesn’t matter how strong or resilient you are,” says Murphy. “When you wake up every day to an unrelenting message that your existence is wrong, your existence is a problem, that has an impact.”
Murphy has struggled with mental health challenges for much of her life and in January made peace with leaving this world. She’s choosing to speak out about her experience in hopes it will take the power away from depression, a condition that thrives in isolation.
“My hope is that someone else who may be in the same position that I am and was, they will realize the strongest thing they can do is say the words, ‘I need help.’ One of the strongest things they will do today is stay.”
With a rise in online hate towards the LGBTQ2 community and three Alberta laws that target transgender youth, advocates have been warning mental health crises are on the rise. With Murphy having recently been through the health-care system, she says now is the time for more targeted support.
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