White Ribbon’s focus has always been the elimination of gender-based violence, but this issue intersects with many other problematic attitudes and behaviors when it comes to gender. One of the most prominent is transphobia.

White Ribbon usually targets men of all ages, but we needed this campaign to reach an even-broader audience: anyone in society who fails to understand the gravity of violence against transgender people.

A rise in anti-trans hate and intolerance means that many trans lives are often cut short by violence—short life stories that end before they can truly begin.

To help build empathy and allyship for the trans community, who need it now more than ever, we created a film that offers a glimpse into the trans experience: the bravery of it, the obstacles they overcome, the nuances of their lives, and most importantly the joy that is possible and how it is often taken away too soon.

White Ribbon believes that people want to better understand the transgender community. That’s what we wanted to facilitate with this film: a deeper understanding of how trans people want to live long and fulfilling lives like any cisgender person.

Because the issue is incredibly complex and nuanced, the first thing we did was reach out to the transgender community to talk to people about their own experiences and the meaningful things in their lives. This includes, for example, the process of getting new identification, like a passport, and how meaningful that is. Or the interpersonal relationships with family members.

We created this campaign to have long-term impact. The film is the centrepiece of the campaign, launched during Trans Awareness Week, that helped create a coalition of allies—from the Government of Canada, who provided $200K in funding, to media companies who donated $200K in media, to the adidas Group and the mayor of Toronto who shared the film on social, extending its reach.

The film launched at the start of Transgender Awareness Week and was shared by a host of allies. The film very quickly generated 290 news stories and 3.8 million social impressions.

As a result, the Canadian federal government donated $200K to fight anti-trans hate. And the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) is currently using the film to advocate for trans rights on a global scale.