There Have Been 14 Trans People Killed in the U.S. So Far This Year

Impact

On June 9, a 20-year-old trans woman became the 14th transgender person killed in the United States in 2016 when her body was found in a burning car in New Orleans, Autostraddle reported Tuesday.

The woman, called Goddess Diamond by trans poet and writer Venus Selenite — "We use 'Goddess' in substitution of a trans woman's dead/government name," Selenite explained in a tweet  — is the latest victim in what has already proven to be a deadly year for the trans community.

Frank Franklin II/AP

The disproportionate violence against trans people is hardly limited to this year. According to the Anti-Violence Project, an LGBTQ advocacy group, in 2013, 72% of the victims of hate violence homicides were trans women, and trans people "experience violence at alarmingly high rates." 

According to the Advocate, 2015 was "the deadliest [year] on record for transgender Americans, with at least 21 trans women killed in the U.S. alone."

Many have drawn parallels between the extreme rhetoric surrounding anti-trans legislation — like the bathroom restrictions enacted with North Carolina's controversial House Bill 2 — and violence against trans people. 

Diamond worked at a New Orleans Wal-Mart, Autostraddle reported. Her coworker and friend, George Melichar, told the New Orleans Advocate that Diamond was "very loved." 

"That's what makes this more difficult," Melichar said. "In addition to losing a friend, we lost an LGBT leader."

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June 17, 2016, 10:40 a.m. Eastern: This story has been updated.