Pgh Lesbian Correspondents

Disaya Monaee, a 32-year-old Black transgender woman was fatally shot near Chicago, Illinois on September 6. Disaya was from Chicago, but died about 25 miles away in the village of Dolton, Illinois. Disaya grew up in the Near North Side neighborhood of Chicago.

Officers were sent to the Prestige Inn and Suites at 1335 E. Sibley Blvd. after witnesses heard gunfire about 4 a.m., Dolton Police Chief Robert Collins said. Police were directed to one of the rooms, where a person appeared to have been shot twice.

Disaya was pronounced dead around 5 AM at Franciscan Hospital, according to local media outlets.

Police have no leads. Notification was delayed by misgendering and deadnaming.

Homecoming services were Sept.14th 2021in Chicago.

“We mourn the loss of Disaya Monaee Smith,” National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) Deputy Executive Director Victoria Kirby York said in a statement. “2021 is on track to be the deadliest year on record for transgender and non-binary people – and in Chicago, Disaya Monaee Smith’s killing marks the fourth transgender person to be murdered in the Chicago region this year alone. Illinois.

Disaya is the thirty-sixth trans, nonbinary or gender nonconforming person reported killed in 2021. Thirty-three of these neighbors have been BIPOC. She is the 27th victim who identified as Black. In total, there have been thirty-six murders or suspicious deaths in the first 268 days of 2021, an average of one death every 6.9 days. 23 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, Disaya. Your social media feeds are filled with tributes and love from your friends and family. I hope they wrap you in comfort as you transition from this life. You deserved so many years to be with them and pursue your dreams. I am deeply sorry that we failed to keep you safe.

May your memory by 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.

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.