Pgh Lesbian Correspondents

She was 20 years old. Her name was Londonn Moore Kinnard and she was a Black trans woman living in North Port, Florida which is near Charlotte County.

On Saturday September 8, her body was found face down shot to death at the intersection of Sawyer Circle and Red Oak Road at 7:30 AM in North Port, Florida. Her death only came to light yesterday because Londonn was misgendered and deadnamed by local law enforcement and media. Londonn reportedly lived in Port Charlotte, about 25 minutes away from the scene of her death.

From Monica Roberts at Transgriot

Londonn is now the 20th person we have lost in the US in 2018 to anti trans violence.   She is the 15th African American trans person we have lost this year, and the tenth person under age 30 we have lost.

She is also the 4th Black trans woman murdered in a ten-day period as well as the 5th trans person from Florida murdered in 2018 as of today. These are terrible ways to have to frame someone’s death, but absolutely necessary given the realities of how the community writ large (both LGBTQ and the general communities) remain silent in the face of this ongoing targeted violence. I’m at a loss as to what it will take for mainstream LGBTQ organizations and community members, much less the larger general population, to invest resources in this very tangible, fatal need.

Londonn’s identity was shredded first by the person(s) who shot her and then by local news affiliates such as the North Point Sun that went out of their way to dissect her identity and explicitly state that their misgendering and deadnaming will continue unless her family asks otherwise. Being so blatant about their editorial decisions is uncomfortable. Clearly, they feel the pressure to use the proper pronouns and name, but won’t budge. They dug out a two-year old photo of Londonn to use versus something she herself shared publicly in more recent times.

Local police are investigating, but sharing few details to protect the case. North Port has had three homicides in recent weeks. Londonn’s car was discovered in nearby Punta Gorda, but there is no word on whether that played a role in her murder. If you have any information, contact Detective Chris Maki at 941-429-7323.

As a reminder, we have a page dedicated to resources for reporting on the LGBTQ community and specific resources about the trans community. This includes links to national, reputable style guides that any outlet or journalist (or blogger) can consult.

Please note that Monica Roberts indicates that as many as two more transgender individuals may be added to this list in coming days as folks in New York work to clarify details around two recent deaths. The folks at Allied Rainbow and Allied Youth, a community center in Charlotte County are stating that Londonn is the 21st trans person murdered this year (so far.) I’ve reached out to them to determine how our lists differ and for more details on potential vigils and final arrangements.

Rest in power, Londonn. Regardless of the media bias, you control your narrative and the record you left will be your legacy. You deserved so many more years to grow and thrive. We will continue to say your name and lift up your life & death as part of the story of transgender America.

This is my list of trans neighbors we have lost to violent deaths in the US this year (2018.) As always, we know that some deaths go unreported or undisclosed for a variety of reasons, most of which are related to transphobia. I ask you to take a moment to read this list to let the enormity of this ongoing epidemic sink in. It is the very least we can do.

1. Christa Leigh Steele-Knudslien – Massachusetts (January 6) 42 years old
2. Viccky Gutierrez – Los Angeles (January 9), 33 years old
3. Tonya ‘Kita’ Harvey – Buffalo (February 6), 35 years old
4. Celine Walker – Jacksonville, Florida (February 4), 36 years old
5. Phylicia Mitchell – Cleveland (February 23), 46 years old
6. Zakaria Fry – Stanley, New Mexico (February 19), 28 years old
7. Amia Tyrae Berryman – Baton Rouge (March 26), 28 years old
8. Sasha Wall – Chesterfield, South Carolina (April 1), 29 years old
9. Karla Patricia Pavon-Flores – Dallas (May 9), 26 years old
10. Nino Fortson – Atlanta (May 13), 36 yeas old
11. Gigi Pierce – Portland (May 21), 28 years old
12. Antash’a English – Jacksonville (June 1), 38 years old
13. Cathalina Christina James – Jacksonville (June 24), 24 years old
14. Keisha Wells – Cleveland (June 24), 58 years old
15. Sasha Garden – Orange County, Florida (July 19), 27 years old
16. Diamond Stephens – Meridian, Mississippi (June 18) 39 years old
17. Dejanay Stanton – Chicago (August 30) 24 years old
18. Vontashia Bell – Shreveport (August 30) 18 years old
19. Shantee Tucker – Philadelphia (September 5) 31 years old
20. Londonn Moore – North Point, Florida (September 8) 20 years old