In honor of Transgender Day of Remembrance (November 20), the Human Rights Campaign has released this year’s report on anti-transgender violence.
According to the report, at least 157 transgender people have been killed in the past six years, since 2013. HRC estimates that at least 22 transgender people have been murdered this year alone, but that number is in no way all-encompassing: “Some victims’ deaths may go unreported, while others may not be identified as transgender or gender non-conforming in the media, often because authorities, journalists, and/or family members refuse to acknowledge their gender correctly,” the report reads.
Among these 22 victims are Kiki Fantroy from South Florida, Chanel Scurlock from North Carolina, and Ashanti Carmon from Maryland.
A large majority of the people killed were young, black, Southern trans women. Of the 22 killed this year, 91 percent were black women, 81 percent were younger than 30, and 68 percent lived in the South. This violence was highly correlated with poverty, as well: 90 percent of deaths occurred in areas with a poverty rate higher than the national average.
Florida and Texas were tied for the states with the most number of incidents with 16 murders each since 2013. They’re followed by Louisiana with 13, California and Ohio with 12 each, and Maryland with 11. Baltimore was the most dangerous city with seven incidents in six years, followed Cleveland and Philadelphia with six, and Atlanta, Detroit, Jacksonville, and Los Angeles with five.
HRC explains that, to help prevent this violence, it’s crucial hate crime laws be expanded to cover crimes based on sexual orientation and gender identity: 82 percent of victims were killed in states without inclusive hate crime protections.
“We can all do our part to support transgender and non-binary community advocates throughout the U.S.,” the report concludes. “Together—transgender and non-binary people and cisgender allies—we can all work together to uplift and empower transgender and non-binary communities across the country in the fight for lasting change.”