Pgh Lesbian Correspondents

Her name was Miia Love Parker. Born and raised in Philadelphia, she was a 25-year-old Black trans woman. She was most recently living in Chester, Pennsylvania, a Philly suburb. She studied at Temple University and worked modeling MAC cosmetics.

According to CBS Philadelphia, Chester police say on April 1, 2022 Friday around 3:30 a.m. Miia Parker, a trans woman was shot while in a vehicle parked on the 1900 block of Chestnut Street. A friend drove her to the hospital where she presumably died.

While the motive is unknown, local police have identified a suspect, 38-year-old Saad Najeed Dwight. He is considered armed and dangerous. A so-called ‘manhunt’ is underway. Anyone with information is asked to call 911 or contact Chester Police at 610-447-8424

Miia’s friends describe her as someone who lit up a room when she entered. Her Facebook profiles lists among her likes – the TV show Pose, puppy memes, and lots of shopping and fashion pages.

Miia is the tenth transgender person reported as a victim of fatal violence in 2022. She is the sixth Black trans woman and the eighth woman of color from these neighbors. At age 25, she is among the eldest of the victims as are under 30 and one was 33 at the times of their deaths. Their deaths come on the heels of 2021, the most violent year in recorded history with the deaths of 57 trans, non-binary, and gender nonconforming people in the United States alone. Note that the tabulation includes a significant number of reports of folx murdered in 2021. This might be confusing. Of course it is confusing. I tried to sort it out below.

As of now, we have lost one trans neighbor to this terror campaign of fatal violence every 9.8 days.

Miia’s funeral was scheduled for today. Friends organized a vigil for her this past weekend and have been speaking with the media to share her spirit.

Rest in power, Miia. You deserved a long and beautiful life. I am so sorry we failed to create a world that would keep you safe. I hope you find peace, Miia. Your friends and loved ones will always celebrate and remember you.

May your memory be a revolution.

This is our list of transgender, nonbinary, and gender nonconforming neighbors who have been victims of the campaign of terror in 2022. Please do not copy or share this list without attribution.  

As six additions to our 2021 list have been revealed in 2022, I am adding them in a separate list below to try and make any sense of this increasing horror. These folks deserve their lives and deaths to be honored and remembered. The complexity only underscores their realities.

1. Amäriey Lèį (Myara) – Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania. January 1, 2022. Age 20. 
2. Duval Princess – Jacksonville, Florida. January 2, 2022. Age 24.
3. Naomie Skinner – Detroit, Michigan, February 12, 2022. Age 25.
4. Cypress Ramos – Lubbock, Texas, February 13, 2022. Age 21.
5. Paloma Velasquez – Houston, Texas, February 26, 2022. Age 29.
6. Matthew Spampinato – New Castle, Delaware, February 9, 2022. Age 21.
7. Tatiana LaBelle – Chicago, Illinois, March 18, 2022. Age 33.
8. Kathryn Newhouse – Canton, Georgia, March 19, 2022. Age 19.
9. Kesha Webster – Jackson, Mississippi, March 26, 2022. Age 24.
10. Miia Love Parker – Chester, Pennsylvania, April 1, 2022. Age 25.

Deaths in 2021 (see this link for deaths reported during the 2021 calendar year) These are deaths reported in 2022 and beyond.

• 52 Za’Niyah Williams – Houston, Texas. December 20, 2021, reported on Jan 5, 2022. Age 21.
• 53 Nikki Turrietta – Albuquerque, New Mexico, December 31, 2021, reported on January 27, 2022. Age 31.
• 54 Keeva Scatter – Baton Rouge, Louisiana, October 15, 2021, confirmed on February 13, 2022. Age 34.
• 55 Rubi Dominguez – Brownsville, Texas, July 15, 2021, confirmed on February 13, 2022. Age 29.
• 56 Martina Caldera – Houston, Texas, December 6, 2021. Age 38.
• 57 Geri Judd – Bossier, Louisiana, September 28, 2021, confirmed March 1, 2022. Age 60.