Charlotte Loh A funeral service will be held for 22-year-old Auckland trans woman Charlotte Loh tomorrow. She died suddenly on Sunday. Her funeral will be held at the Manukau Memorial Gardens Chapel on Puhinui Road in Papatoetoe at 9.30am tomorrow. A vigil will be held at 7.30pm tomorrow at Albert Park, organised by members of Auckland's transgender community. They say it will be a safe space for those who want to pay their respects to Loh "and other trans women who have lost their lives to the culture of hostility we live in". Meanwhile updated death notice for Loh continues to refer to her with a former male name, and as a ‘son’ and ‘brother’. It says she was “also known as Charlotte”. The updated obituary also includes a statement from her family reading "'he' will be missed and never forgotten, forever in our hearts. We look forward to seeing 'him' again in Paradise." It's understood Loh had specifically asked not to be referred to by the wrong name or pronoun, nor to be dressed in the wrong clothing. Loh had a busy online presence and had suggested she had faced bullying and physical and emotional abuse throughout her life. She began coming out as trans at the age of 15, and started her medical transition when she was 18. Loh said she'd had a difficult relationship with her parents, particularly her mother, who is a Jehovah’s Witness. A number of similar cases have also been highlighted overseas recently, particularly in the US. There have also been other cases of transgender people being misgendered after their deaths in New Zealand, including pilot Julianne “JK” Kramer who died in a crash in Cardrona Valley. At her family’s request, she was referred to with male pronouns by police and mainstream media, and throughout her funeral at a City Impact Church. There is ALWAYS help out there, if you need someone to talk to. OUTLine is a confidential phone service for people in the lgbti community which can be reached on 0800 OUTLINE (6885463). After hours, the 24/7 Depression Helpline and its trained counsellors can be reached on 0800 111 757.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 23rd January 2015 - 9:30am