Chicago has become a hub of transgender culture, and nowhere is that more apparent than the annual Trans 100 event, which celebrates 100 transgender, genderqueer, and gender-nonconforming individuals around America who are making the world better for their community.

The third annual Trans 100 event hit Mayne Stage Sunday night. People packed the halls to listen to violinist Tona Brown and Against Me! rocker Laura Jane Grace perform and hear speeches from GLAAD spokesperson Tiq Milan and filmmaker Lana Wachowski.

Wachowski rarely speaks publicly but she agreed to serve as keynote this year because “there were things I wanted to say that I would never say to a broader, non-trans audience.” She went on to talk about how dangerous the world can be for transgender individuals. “Most people in the world know what it’s like to have that dream crushed or beaten out of them,” she said. “The difference between us in this room and those other dreamers: First, our dream to be seen and accepted as trans people can often cost us our lives. And second, none of us in here has ever given up on that dream."

Here’s what else we saw when we stopped by.

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