At the corner of Penticton Way and Crater Drive in Mira Mesa, there's a marker honoring a local civil rights icon.

On top of the pole, the brown street sign reads "Julia Legaspi Way." She was a trailblazer for transgender rights in San Diego.

“What Julia was able to do in her life meant that more people got to have the story that she lived,” San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said.

The sign was unveiled on Wednesday, on what would be Legaspi's birthday. She died on April 10, 2025. In front of her house, community members gathered to honor Legaspi. She was an icon in the LGBTQ+, Filipino American, and Asian American Pacific Islander communities.

Gloria said at a time when immigrants and transgender communities are under attack, choosing to honor someone like Legaspi sends a powerful message.

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