Pgh Lesbian Correspondents

Just days after reporting on the first reported murder of a trans woman in 2017 and the updated last reported murder in 2016, I’m blogging again about another murdered trans woman of color. Jamie Lee Wounded Arrow was 28 years old, a member of the Oglala Lakota tribe and a resident of Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

From Mic.com

Police in Sioux Falls are investigating the homicide of Jamie Lee Wounded Arrow, a 28-year-old two-spirit transgender woman, KSFY reports. 

Wounded Arrow was found after a neighbor smelled a “strong odor” coming from her apartment Friday night, according to KSFY. Officers discovered her body there. 

“Based upon the investigation, the victim’s death appears to be a homicide,” Lt. Michael Colwill said in a news release obtained by the Argus Leader. More details will be released about Wounded Arrow’s death after a police briefing scheduled for Monday.

Mey from Autostraddle writes:

Just a few days ago we reported on the murder of a Black trans woman from Mississippi named Mesha Caldwell. Who knows when we’ll report on another. It could be tomorrow or it could be next week, but based on the rates that trans women of color are being murdered over the last few years, it’s going to be soon. Also, while I’m saying this is the second murder, what that means is that it’s the second murder we know about. So often the murders of trans women go unreported. This can be because she was a sex worker or homeless and the police don’t care, or because she was misgendered, or because she was Black or Latina or Native American and the police and media don’t care, or most often, a combination of these factors. America hates trans women of color and while we get more attention when we die then while we’re alive, we still don’t get much then.

Two Spirit is a culturally distinct gender that describes Indigenous North Americans who fulfils one of many mixed gender roles found traditionally among many Native Americans and Canadian First Nations indigenous groups.

Rest in power, Jamie Lee. Your death is a horrific tragedy that echos silently through our community. We will continue to speak your name and demand justice.

The list of trans neighbors murdered in 2017 thus far.

1. Mesha Caldwell – Mississippi (January 4), 41 years old
2. Jamie Lee Wounded Arrow – Sioux Falls (January 7), 28 years old