Pgh Lesbian Correspondents

“It may be a sad song but we’re gonna sing it again. I will continue to fight and push for the voices of black transgender women to be uplifted until the day I die. We deserve to be heard, to be loved, and for our very existence to be acknowledged.” —Riah Milton’s sister, Ariel Mary Ann

We remember.

Remembering and saying the names of transgender and gender nonconforming individuals who lost their lives to violence not as performative grief, but to hold ourselves accountable for creating a more just and verdant world. That is our task today on the Trans Day of Remembrance.

2020 has been a brutal year by any account. In the midst of a pandemic that has killed 250,000 Americans, there’s another horrifying trend – an increase in the number of transgender and gender non-conforming people who have been killed.

There have been at least 37 documented murders in 2020 to date, exceeding the 21 recorded homicides in 2019 and breaking “the record” since this information began being recorded. Of the 37 deaths recorded in 2020 so far, 22 were Black and 7 were Latinx; 25 were Black or Latinx women. 13 were 25 year old or younger.

Internationally, there have been at least 350 documented homicides through the end of September.

For more context on the TDOR and related crime statistics, please visit the HRC website.

Journalists writing about TDOR should please consult the GLAAD media guide.

As a blogger who tries diligently to document the lives and deaths of those killed in this epidemic, I struggle with this day. I know it is important. I also know it is not about me – white cis lesbian blogger – processing how bad I feel. At the same time, it is about me  – white cis lesbian blogger – to do more than shed tears, but to dismantle the cistem that perpetuates this endless violence.

You know the drill

• find trans led resources in your community and lend your support.
• invest in trans led and trans centered community projects
• follow the news and the politics of transgender issues
• say their names, say something

My list of transgender, gender non-conforming, and non-binary neighbors who have lost their lives to violent deaths in the US during 2020. There are different types of lists, including the formal TDOR list that goes from Nov 20 – Nov 20. Google and read them all. Read their stories and learn about their lives. Understand that woven in with the horrific crimes are tales of resiliency, compassion, and determination. Violence predicated on the transphobic notion that these particular neighbors are lesser cannot, will not negate their humanity and their beauty.

1. Dustin Parker – McAlester, Oklahoma. January 1, 2020. Age 25.
2. Alexa Negron Luciano – Toa Baja, Puerto Rico. February 24, 2020. Age 29.
3. Yampi Mendez Arocho – Moca, Puerto Rico, March 5, 2020. Age 19.
4. Monica Diamond – Charlotte, North Carolina. March 18, 2020. Age 34.
5. Lexi – Harlem, New York City, New York. March 28, 2020. Age 33.
6. Johanna Metzger – Baltimore, Maryland. April 1, 2020. Age 25.
7. Serena Angelique Velazquezz – Puerto Rico. April 22, 2020. Age 32.
8. Layla Pelaez – Puerto Rico. April 22, 2020. Age 21.
9. Penélope Díaz Ramírez – Puerto Rico. April 13, 2020. Age 31
10. Nina Pop – Sikeston, Missouri. May 3, 2020. Age 28.
11. Helle Jae O’Regan – San Antonio, Texas. May 6, 2020. Age 20.
12. Tony McDade – Tallahassee, Florida. May 27, 2020. Age 38.
13. Dominique Rem’mie Fells – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. June 8, 2020. Age 27.
14. Riah Milton – Liberty Township, Ohio. June 9, 2020. Age 25.
15. Selena Reyes Hernandez – Chicago. May 31, 2020. Age 37.
16. Brayla Stone – Sherwood, Arkansas. June 25, 2020. Age 17.
17. Merci Mack – Dallas, June 30, 2020. Age 22.
18. Jayne Thompson – Colorado, May 2020. Age 33.
19. Bree Black – Pompana Beach, Florida, July 3, 2020. Age 27.
20. Draya McCarty – Baton Rouge, Louisiana, July 2020. Age unknown.
21. Shaki Peters – Amite, Louisiana, July 1, 2020. Age 32.
22. Marilyn Cazares – Brawley, California, July 13, 2020. Age 22.
23. Tatiana Hall – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, approx June 29, 2020. Age 22.
24. Queasha Hardy – Baton Rouge, Louisiana, July 27, 2020. Age 24.
25. Tiffany Harris – Bronx, New York, July 26, 2020. Age 32.
26. Aja Raquell Rhone-Spears – Portland, Oregon, July 28, 2020. Age 32.
27. Aerrion Burnett – Independence, Missouri, September 19, 2020. Age 37.
28. Mia Green – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, September 28, 2020. Age 29.
29. Michelle Ramos Vargas – Puerto Rico, September 30, 2020. Age 33.
30. Kee Sam – Lafayette, Louisiana, August 12, 2020. Age 24.
31. Felycya Harris – Augusta, Georgia, October 3, 2020. Age 32.
32. Brooklyn DeShauna Smith – Shreveport, Louisiana, October 7, 2020. Age 20.
33. Sara Blackwood – Indianapolis, Indiana, October 11, 2020. Age 39.
34. Angel Haynes – Memphis, Tennessee, October 25, 2020. Age 25.
35. Lea Rayshone Daye – Cleveland, Ohio, August 30, 2020. Age 28.
36. Scott DeVore, also known as Scottlynn Kelly DeVore – Augusta, Georgia, March 31, 2020. Age 51
37. Yunieski Carey Herrera – Miami, November 17, 2020. Age 39.