There are nearly a hundred trees currently on display at the South Dakota Capital Building for their annual Christmas at the Capital display. And this year, for the first time, there’s a tree recognizing LGBTQ+ and Two Spirit people
Susan Williams is the Executive Director of The Transformation Project, a nonprofit that supports transgender youth and adults and educates communities in South Dakota about gender identity and expression.
She said they wanted people to know their tree stood for pride.
“You’ll see a color gradient of warmth and clarity for transition. You'll see mirrors for reflection and support and for transformation you'll see soft hues of pink,” Williams said “and the red is there as a deliberate accent representing heart holiday in bloodline. And then the words that you'll see on our tree are words for voice and unity.”
The Transformation project partnered with Equality South Dakota, the Black Hills Center for Equality, Sioux Falls Pride, and the ACLU of South Dakota.
Williams says the pride tree represents the support and resources these organizations offer to the LGBTQ+ and Two Spirit communities during the holidays and year-round.
The display is open to the public until December 26.