Chicago street named for Elise Malary, trans woman and activist who died in 2022

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Elise Malary, a Black trans woman and founding member of the Chicago Therapy Collective in Andersonville, now has a street named after her.

Malary died in March 2022. Her body was pulled from Lake Michigan a little over a week after she was reported missing.

Friday, on the day that would have been her birthday, Catalpa Avenue between Clark and Ashland was given the honorary name "Elise Malary Way."

READ MORE: Transgender rights activist Elise Malary remembered, honored after body found in Lake Michigan

The street renaming was also held ahead of Trans Day of Visibility, which is Sunday, March 31.

Malary spent years advocating for transgender rights, and her friends and family said her work will never be forgotten.

"We will remember your quiet self-assurance that lit every room she entered with an invincible smile," said friend Myles Brady Davis in 2022, at a vigil mourning Malary's death.