Will 2022 be the Deadliest Year for Black Trans Women?

By Kalyn Womack, The Root

There are still more incidents that go unreported and misreported.

The Human Rights Campaign tracked a record number of 50 violent incidents against transgender people last year, with majority of the victims being Black and Latinx trans women. This year, at least 18 fatalities have been reported so far. That number just increased upon the murder of 28-year-old Brazil Johnson, per the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

According to her mother, Bernitha Gildart, Johnson loved poetry, had a passion for cooking and liked playing video games. As a teen, she was a community health promoter for Diverse and Resilient, an LGBT-serving organization. She graduated from high school and college and became an assistant manager at local restaurants. Gildart said Johnson came out as transgender when she was 21 and accepted her transition with open arms.

Then, Johnson’s life was senselessly taken from her. The morning of June 15, she was found shot to death on Teutonia Avenue in Milwaukee. No arrests have been made in her killing but the investigation is ongoing, according to Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Police say they haven’t determined the motive of the killing but given the political climate of the country, LGBT lives are being threatened consistently.

“I think it was a hate crime. It’s a nightmare come to life,” Gidlart told Patch Wisconsin.

Find out more about this risk for a vulnerable population.

Homophobia and racism have spurred crime in California and an increase in Black femicide. Some even consider these modern examples of lynching.

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