Killings Of Trans Americans Reach All Time High
Brooklyn DeShuna Smith, 20, is the 32nd known trans person to have been killed in the US this year after she was found dead last Wednesday in Shreveport, Louisiana. Smith’s murder makes 2020 the deadliest year on record for the trans community in the US, the previous of which was 2017 where 31 trans people were killed in the country.
Smith, who was studying cosmetology at her local community college and recently celebrated her 20th birthday, was found dead with a gunshot wound. Police are investigating the incident but have not yet identified any suspects. It is not yet clear if Smith’s death is being treated as a hate crime, as ‘G Scene’ reports.
Tori Cooper, the director of community engagement for the transgender justice initiative at the Human Rights Campaign (HCR), said: “With the news of Brooklyn’s death, we’ve now seen more trans and gender non-conforming people killed this year since we began tracking these deaths in 2013. This violence is horrific, and it must be stopped.”
Cooper continued: “We need everyone to commit to taking action today to bring this violence to an end. As we mourn with Brooklyn’s friends and family, we will continue fighting for justice for all trans and gender non-conforming people.”
Smith’s death comes days after the murder of Felycya Harris, who was shot in Georgia. The majority of trans victims of violence in the US have been black women such as Smith and Harris.
HCR president Alphonso David stated that: “Dehumanizing rhetoric, especially by political leaders like President Trump, has a real-life consequence for the community, particularly transgender women of color and especially Black transgender women.”
“As the presidential campaign has hit its crescendo, so too has the attacks coming from Trump, his administration and his allies,” David continued. “They have spent millions on ads spewing hate and lies about the transgender and gender non-conforming community, and have attacked their right to health care, right to serve and right to live —openly dehumanizing and denying them the dignity they deserve at every opportunity.”
“Every life has value,” he concluded, “and we must utilize this moment to not only remember … each and every one of the people killed this year, but take action and work to dismantle this culture of violence and stigma that the transgender and gender non-conforming community faces. Our community’s lives are on the line, and we must commit with every breath to fight for the change we need.”
The number of murdered trans and gender non-conforming people is likely much higher since many killings go unreported or their victims are misgendered by police and medical authorities.
Read related myGwork articles here:
Black Trans Woman Stabbed To Death At A Vigil For Another Murder Victim
Thousands Join Black Trans Lives Matter March In London - In Pictures
14 Countries Ban Being Trans, New International Reports Reveals
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