Original Art Sundays No. 108: for the Fallen

I missed a few weeks of blogging my art, and am presented with a serendipitous, albeit somber, opportunity to remedy the situation in part.
Tonight is the observance of the Transgender Day of Remembrance. As I am unable to attend, I am posting work on the topic.
This page was created for a late issue of Transsexual News Telegraph (TNT), one of two independently published magazines dedicated to trans life and issues in the 1990s. Editor Gail Sondegaard rejected the page as too somber. Odd, because I tried to balance realism and optimism.
The page would have been published in issue 9, Autumn 2000. Transgender Day of Remembrance was founded in 1998. However, I was unaware of the day until some years later.
I rediscovered the page during my move. The pasteup was falling apart, and there was random discoloring on some of the text panels.
With minimal restoration, I decided to go ahead and post the piece.

The fine print: done on Coquille board in China marker, type set in Copperplate. Original size 11" x 17". Scanned in RGB to preserve the range of grays, despite a tendency of such scans to run to the green part of the light spectrum.
Technically I consider this a comic page, but some would call it illustrated text instead- a fine hair to split in my book.
That Alan Moore quote, from V For Vendetta, remains one of my favorites.
I still think a physical memorial to our fallen is a worthwhile idea. But it would be better if the memorials and tributes were not necessary.
next: a long overdue new page. No, really.