Newcastle will join cities across the UK in paying tribute to a teenager Brianna Ghey, who was fatally stabbed in a park.
At 6pm on Saturday, people will gather at Times Square, in Newcastle city centre to remember the 16-year-old, from Birchwood in Warrington, Cheshire, who was found by members of the public as she lay wounded on a path in Linear Park, Culcheth, at around 3.13pm on Saturday.
A boy and a girl, both aged 15, have been arrested on suspicion of her murder and remain in custody, Cheshire Police said. The victim, who had a large following on social media site TikTok, was a transgender girl but police said there is no evidence to suggest her death was a hate crime.
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In the coming days, vigils organised by members of the transgender community are due to be held in cities such as London, Glasgow, Leeds and Belfast. Newcastle's vigil for Brianna Ghey has been organised by a number of groups in the North East, including Northern Pride UK, Northumbria IWW, North East Anarchist Group, LGBT+ Northern Social Group, Newcastle University LGBT+ Society, and North East Against Racism.
Anyone attending is encouraged to bring flags and signs, as well as wear pink or colourful attire.
In a post on Instagram, Northern Pride UK, wrote: "This Saturday, we are joining together with IWW, North East Anarchist Group, LGBT+ Northern Social Group, Newcastle University LGBT+ Society, North East Against Racism and others to mourn the loss of Brianna Ghey, a 16 year old girl from Warrington who was murdered on the 11th February.
"We will be gathering from 6pm at Times Square, Newcastle. Please bring along as many flags and signs as possible and feel free to wear pink and colourful attire, which we've heard Brianna loved and matched her personality. Candles will be provided."
A GoFundMe crowdfunding page set up to help Brianna's family has already raised over £70,000 in donations just one day after it was set up.
In tribute to Brianna, those who launched the GoFundMe wrote: "Brianna was an outgoing, confident girl. She brought a lot of laughter to those who knew her. She was looking forward to taking her exams this year and beginning her journey into the adult world."
It comes just a week after Chroniclelive launched our Stop Knives Taking Lives campaign to put an end to knife related deaths. Police, politicians and grieving families have joined us in calling for an end to knife violence.
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