By Dennis Richmond Jr.
Ariyanna Mitchell, 17, was murdered in Hampton, Virginia in April. A suspect questioned her gender identity and fired at her numerous times after receiving a response. Keshia Chanel Geter, 26, was murdered in Augusta, Georgia in July. Authorities arrested Jacquarie Allen for the murder. Tiffany Banks, 25, was killed in Miami, Florida last month. There was a vigil for the young woman.
According to the Human Rights Campaign, Tiffany’s death is at least the 32nd violent killing of a trans or gender non-conforming (TGNCNB) person in 2022. Tiffany’s death is also the fourth known killing of a Black trans person in Florida this year. New York isn’t off the hook. Layleen Xtravaganza Cubilette-Polanco, 27, an Afro-Latina trans woman, died at New York City’s main jail facility, Rikers Island, in June of 2019. The staff didn’t provide Layleen with lifesaving care. Layleen’s death could be seen as a murder case as well. Part of The Ballroom Scene, Layleen was a member of The House of Xtravaganza. Her family home was in Yonkers, New York.
Teenage Black and Latina trans girls and trans women are dying at unprecedented rates. Many trans girls and trans women are dying at the hands of adolescent boys and men. From Florida to Arkansas and Texas to Pennsylvania, trans girls and trans women are bothered, bullied, beaten, and brutally slain.
Brayla Stone’s murder in Sherwood, Arkansas, occurred in June 2020. Her body was found inside a black Saturn Vue. Brayla will never have the chance to see her 18th birthday because she died at 17 years old. Bee Love Slater, 23, was killed in Clewiston, Florida, in September 2019. Her burned body was in a torched car. She burned to death.
Muhlaysia Booker’s killing happened in Dallas, Texas, in May of 2019. Assaulted the month before, people not only stood and watched the assault, but they also recorded it and shouted transphobic slurs. In May 2019, she was found dead on arrival. Her cause of death was a gunshot wound. Muhlaysia was 22 years old. Merci ‘Pooda’ Mack followed me on Instagram. Her murder in Dallas, Texas, occurred in June 2020 after being shot to death at an apartment complex. Merci was 22 years old.
These stories are heartbreaking.
Dozens, hundreds, or thousands of trans murders happen each year. No one has an exact number. Many times, trans women are misgendered. If not misgendered, often, the stories never make national headlines.
TS Candii, 28, of Brooklyn, New York, is the Founder of Black Trans Nation. Her solution to this issue is “learn more about us.” She says that folx need “more education.” A lot of people base their ideas on their family and their religion. If people come from families that don’t respect LGBTQ+ folx, this could spark bigotry and violence later in life. “You don’t have to like us.” But “respect us enough to not kill us,” she said.
Dennis Richmond, Jr., is an author and journalist focused on the Black, Latinx, and LGBTQIA+ Community. He lives in Yonkers. Follow him on Twitter @NewYorkStakz.
