The death of a well-loved, “tireless advocate” for trans rights in Toronto has left a close community reeling with shock and an all-too-familiar sense of grief.

Julie Berman, 51, was found with serious injuries to her head after Toronto Police were called to a residence in the Brunswick Avenue and Harbord Street area on Sunday. Berman was taken to hospital where she was pronounced dead. A 29-year-old man has been charged with second-degree murder.

“Total disbelief,” said Susan Gapka, a community organizer and advocate on trans and human rights issues who had known Berman for more than 15 years. “Julie was always showing up at our community events, giving speeches at Trans Day of Remembrance, talking about her personal experiences with transphobia. Never anticipated that she would be gone, and be gone in this tragic way.”

The investigation is ongoing. The circumstances and suspected motivation regarding Berman’s death have not been released; the people who spoke with the Star about Berman, as well as the violence and discrimination facing transgender people, did so generally and not about this specific case.

As news of what happened spread so did tributes for a woman described as sweet and brave and tireless in her fight to improve the lives of transgender people.

The 519, a non-profit community hub for the LGBTQ2S community, described Berman as “a beloved” member of their community and an advocate for the rights of trans people, in a Facebook post.

“Our sincerest condolences to Julie Berman’s friends, loved ones and to The 519 communities. It’s a tragic loss and a sad reminder to all of us that trans communities remain the most vulnerable to transphobia and violence,” the message reads.

On Friday, a short post on the Twitter account for Canada’s Finance Minister Bill Morneau read: “Julie Berman was a champion for Toronto’s LGBTQ2 community and a beloved friend to many. She will be missed, she will be remembered.” It linked to a post from Pride Toronto that described Berman as a “tireless advocate.”

Gapka said Berman was “a beautiful person on the outside and the inside” who loved to help people and fight to ensure their rights are respected.

This fall, the women helped launch the Kyle Scanlon Memorial Fund, for the trans activist and leader who committed suicide in 2012. The goal of the fund is to support trans people and trans organizations across the city.

“We sat together and had a meal together, talked and reminisced about things,” Gapka said. The two had a common friend who had passed away in the summer, and Gapka shared a picture of that person with Berman. “I will cherish that memory of us together, knowing that I did something nice to Julie.”

Gapka told the Star that Berman is the first reported case of a trans person being murdered in Canada this year and a horrible reminder of the violence and transphobia transgender people face around the world.

On this past Trans Day of Remembrance (Nov. 20), the Trans Murder Monitoring Report said that 331 trans and gender-diverse people were registered as having been murdered worldwide between Oct. 1, 2018 and Sept. 30, 2019. Since 2008, a total of 3,314 trans people have been reported as murdered, according to the report.

“These are only people reported,” Gapka said. “Violence and discrimination is well known in the trans communities. Just never expected it to happen to someone like Julie, you know.”

Savannah Burton, a Toronto-based actress and trans advocate, did not know Berman well but had enjoyed a dinner with her and a small group of friends a few years ago. They connected again this summer. Burton was on the second storey of the The Churchmouse pub, a Firkin pub at Church Street and Wellesley Street, when she spotted Berman on the street and ran down to give her a really big hug. “A couple of hugs. It was sweet to get to talk to her. She was a really nice person.”

Burton said if there is one message she hopes people take away it’s that, speaking generally, the biggest threat to trans women is how society treats the men who are attracted to them. It is that stigma and shame that generates the kind of anger, she said, that ends with women dead on the street.

“I really want people to think, really think, what they can personally do to make society not view men who are attracted to trans women in such a negative way,” Burton said. “That is what is killing trans women. It’s the fear.”

Former MPP Cheri DiNovo, a minister for the Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre for Faith Justice and the Arts, said the church community took a moment to remember Berman as part of Christmas Eve prayers.

“This amazing woman known to the trans activist community will be missed,” wrote DiNovo in an email to the Star. “We prayed and paid homage.”

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It was DiNovo who introduced the private member’s bill in 2016 that resulted in Trans Day of Remembrance becoming law.

Next Nov. 20, as is now tradition, Queen’s Park will observe a moment of silence for those lost. That is also when Berman’s name, DiNovo said, will be formally added to the list of the dead.

Colin Harnack, 29, has been charged with second-degree murder. He appeared at Old City Hall on Dec. 23. He was scheduled to appear via video on Friday afternoon.