Pgh Lesbian Correspondents

An Indianapolis trans woman named Sara Blackwood is the latest victim of gun violence in the United States. She was shot to death walking home from work on National Coming Out Day, October 11 around 10 PM.

From Fox 59 in Indianapolis

According to police, the shooting occurred in the 2500 block of E. Washington Street at around 10 p.m. The victim, a woman, was taken to an area hospital in critical condition and later died from her injuries, police said.

Planenttransgender is reporting that Sara worked at a Long John Silvers franchise nearby and was walking home from her shift when she was shot.Sara was born in Monroe, Washington and lived in Indianapolis during recent years. She has been in a domestic partnership for eight years and was a self-described “MLP:FiM obsessed town girl fed up with capitalism.”

That’s what we know. A trans woman of undetermined age was shot walking home from her workplace in Indianapolis for no known reason. She died in the hospital from her injuries. We don’t know who shot her or how or if they were known to her. We know a little about her interests and political beliefs or at least what she chose to share on Facebook. And we know that her domestic partner has not been informed much by the police.

We don’t know if Sara was white, Black, Latinx, Asian, Indigenous. There are no photos that have surfaced yet. Her friends say she was private and that seems to be the case.

This is why we must keep Sara and her family in our minds, not our prayers. We must ensure that her death is properly investigated and her identity is respected by all involved. The original police and media reports misgendered her, but that was corrected be vigilant friends. We must support Sara’s loved ones as they prepare for her final arrangements.

We must keep in mind that this violence is never ending, that two young trans women have been murdered since Monica Roberts death last week and she would want to us (I believe) to lift them up as well. 33 trans neighbors murdered by mid-October far away ensuring 2020 is the most violent year to date. And there are 76 days to go.

We must read the names of those who have been robbed of their lives this year, 33 here in the United States that we know of and hundreds more around the world, then find ways to support the trans community. We must find ways to hold space for a reality where Sara could have been randomnly targeted for robbery or assault, but still victimized by transphobia and not reduce the true cost of her death.

A friend of Sara and her domestic partner shared this announcement on Facebook to deflect questions while Sara’s loved ones process this devastating news.

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What they do know, is that Sara was shot, and alive at the scene. However, she died during emergency surgery at the hospital. This is the extent of Avery’s knowledge on what happened.

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