Pgh Lesbian Correspondents

A 25-year-old Black trans Chicago woman is the latest victim of the ongoing campaign of terror targeting the trans, nonbinary, and gender nonconforming community.

Her name was Brianna Ulmer, also known as Briana Hamilton and Brinasty. She was shot to death in the early morning hours in the 7800 block of South Bishop, Auburn/Gresham neighborhood, South Side on September 17, 2021. From WGN9 (I fixed the misgendering)

[O]fficers responded to a person shot in the 7800 block of S. Bishop around 6:30 a.m. Friday. Upon arrival, a person was found with a gunshot wound to the head. They were transported to Holy Cross Hospital where they were pronounced dead. No one is in custody. Area 2 Detectives are investigating.

Brianna lived in Chicago. Her social media feed is filled with affirmative self-love content as well as observations on culture, fashion, and society. It was just like the feed of most 25 year olds. She shared a recent trip to Detroit and posted sadly about the death of a local young man in her community. Her vibrancy is palpable. And that makes her death from a gunshot wound to the head in the early morning on the Chicago sidewalk so … numbing.

As of this post, the police had no leads and issued no more information. Notification of the community was delayed – as usual – by misgendering and deadnaming Brianna. Her friends and family stepped right up on that in the midst of their grief to set the record straight, a task most families don’t have to worry about during these times.

Brianna’s mother, Ronda, took to Facebook to update on final arrangements.

Brianna is the thirty-seventh trans, nonbinary or gender nonconforming person reported killed in 2021. Thirty-four of these neighbors have been BIPOC. She is the 28th victim who identified as Black. In total, there have been thirty-seven murders or suspicious deaths in the first 268 days of 2021, an average of one death every 7 days. 24 of these victims were under the age of 30. That we know of, as many deaths go unreported or unacknowledged.

2021 is on track to exceed 2020’s record of 44 deaths. This number is potentially skewed due to underreporting in previous years. It is a horrifying reality.

75% of the victims in 2021 have been Black. 66% have been under the age of 30.

Rest in power, Brianna. Your friends and family celebrate your life as they grieve your untimely death. They will pursue justice for you. I am so very sorry that we didn’t create a safer world for you. You deserved better from all of us.

May your memory be a revolution.

Our list of transgender, gender, and non-binary neighbors lost to violence in 2021. Please do not copy or share this list without attribution.

1. Tyianna Davarea Alexandra — Chicago, Illinois. January 6, 2021. Age 28.
2. Samuel Edmund Damián Valentín — Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico. January 9, 2021. Age 21.
3. Dominique Jackson — Jackson, Mississippi. January 25, 2021. Age 30.
4. Bianca ‘Muffin’ Bankz — Atlanta, Georgia. January 21, 2021. Age 31.
5. Fifty Bandzzz — Baton Rouge, Louisiana. January 28, 2021. Age 21.
6. Alexus “Kimmy” Braxton — Miami, Florida. February 4, 2021. Age 45.
7. Chynaa Carrillo — New Wilmington, Pennsylvania. February 18, 2021. Age 24.
8. Jeffrey ‘JJ’ Bright — Ambridge, Pennsylvania. February 22, 2021. Age 16.
9. Jasmine Cannady — Ambridge, Pennsylvania. February 22, 2021. Age 22.
10. Jenna Franks — Jacksonville, North Carolina, February 24, 2021. Age 34. **
11. Diamond Nicole ‘Kyree’ Sanders — Cincinnati, Ohio. March 3, 2021. Age 23.
12. Rayanna Pardo — Los Angeles, California, March 17, 2021. Age 26. ***
13. Aidelen Evans — Port Arthur, Texas, March 2021. Age 24 ****
14. Dominique Lucious — Springfield, Missouri, April 8, 2021. Age 26.
15. Jaida Peterson — Charlotte, North Carolina, April 4, 2021. Age 29.
16. Remy Fennell — Charlotte, North Carolina, April 15, 2021. Age 28.
17. Tiara Banks — Chicago, Illinois, April 21, 2021. Age 26.
18. Natalia Smüt Lopez — San Jose, California, April 23, 2021. Age 24.
19. Tiffany Thomas — Dallas, Texas, April 21, 2021. Age 38.
20. Iris Santos — Houston, Texas, April 23, 2021. Age 22.
21. Jahaira M. DeAlto — Boston, Massachusetts, May 2, 2021. Age 42.
22. Keri Washington — Clearwater, Florida, May 1, 2021. Age 49.
23. Danny Henson — Baltimore, Maryland, May 4, 2021. Age 31.
24. Whispering Wind Bear Spirit — York, Pennsylvania, May 4, 2021 Age 41
25. Sophie Vasquez — Atlanta, Georgia, May 4, 2021. Age 36.
26. Serenity Hollis — Albany, Georgia, May 8, 2021. Age 24.
27. Oliver “Ollie” Taylor — Gervais, Oregon, May 19, 2021. Age 27.
28. Thomas Hardin — York, South Carolina, May 2, 2021. Age 35.
29. Poe Black / Oliver Jackson — Slab City, Niland, California, May 11, 2021 (estimated). Age 21.
30. EJ Boykin / Novaa Watson — Lynchburg, Virginia, May 14, 2021. Age 23.
31. Taya Ashton — Suitland, Maryland, July 17, 2021. Age 20.
32. Shai Vanderpump — Trenton, New Jersey, July 30, 2021. Age 23.
33. Tierramarie Lewis — Cleveland, Ohio, June 12, 2021. Age 30.
34. Miss CoCo — Dallas, Texas, August 7, 2021. Age 44.
35. Pooh Johnson — Shreveport, Louisiana, August 23, 2021. Age 25.
36. Disaya Monaee Smith – Dolton, Illinois, September 6, 2021. Age 32.
37. Brianna Ulmer Hamilton – Chicago, Illinois, September 17, 2021. Age 25.

We are also still monitoring these suspicious deaths from 20/21 (in addition to the 44 documented killings.)

Fendi Mon’ezah Armstrong — Lithonia, Georgia, November 11, 2020. Age 39

Kimberely Patricia Cope — Athens, Georgia, December 27, 2020. Age 40.

Natasha Keianna — Detroit, Michigan, January 12, 2021. Age 37.

Bonaire ‘Bonnie’ Black — Atlanta, Georgia, December 31, 2020. Age 19.

Koko Nia Labeija — Chicago, Illinois, Found June 2020, Identified April 2021, Age 19

Haven Bailey — Villa Park, Illinois, May 24, 2021. Age 25.

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