21st transgender woman killed in 2015

[Chic 20,830]

Five or six unidentified men attacked, shot and killed Kiesha Jenkins, 22, a Philadelphia transgender woman of color early Tuesday morning, Philadelphia magazine reports. Jenkins was pronounced dead within the half-hour at a local hospital. 

Jenkins' death marks the 21st homicide of a transgender woman in the United States and the 18th homicide of a transgender woman of color in 2015, the Anti-Violence Project told Mic. Jenkins is also the second killing of a transgender woman in Philadelphia this year after the fatal stabbing in May of 21-year-old London Chanel.

This is a crisis: Philadelphia homicide Capt. James Clark told the Philadelphia Inquirer that Jenkins exited a car moments prior to her murder. Once out of the car, the group surrounded Jenkins and when she fell to the ground during the assault, then was shot twice in the back. Police have not yet determined a motive. 

News of Jenkins' death comes only one day after news of the death of Melvin, a 30 year-old Detroit black gay man who often dressed in feminine clothing. According to the Anti-Violence Project, Melvin was dressed in feminine clothing when he was killed. 
A harrowing year for trans violence: "We know transgender women of color are disproportionately killed and that there's an crisis of violence against transgender women of color in this country," Chai Jindasurat, co-director of community organizing and public advocacy at the New York City Anti-Violence Project, told Mic. Jindasurat also runs the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs. 

According to the Anti-Violence Project's 2014 Report on Lesbian, Gay, Bis-xual, Transgender, Queer and HIV-Affected Hate Violence, at least 12 known transgender women were killed in 2014. That number has already almost doubled during this particularly bleak year of transgender violence. The first two months of 2015 saw one transgender women murdered every week for the first eight weeks. 
"Even if there's no clear motive, we know that her identity was part of the violence that she experienced," Jindasurat said. "We can't say that this violence is random or by coincidence."

"In terms of policy changes, transgender people need to be protected from discrimination in every part of their life from the classroom to employment to housing," he said. 

The importance of being counted: However, in order to enact this change, the U.S. Census Bureau, which does not track the population currently, must recognize transgender Americans by the numbers. Orange Is the New Black actress Laverne Cox recently called for the bureau to count the transgender population in hopes of addressing the crisis of anti-transgender violence. 

"What message are we sending to young people who are trans and gender-nonconforming when we don't even count them?" Cox asked at the Social Good Summit in New York on Sept. 28. "We suggest their identities don't even matter." 
Cox says any systemic change must begin with visibility, then move beyond that to systemic change. 

"I was thinking that visibility is only part of the equation," she said. "We must have social policy, systemic change. And then I thought about the census. Systemically, this idea of the gender binary is very much institutionalized in the fact that we just don't count trans people." 

 

http://m.mic.com/articles/126400/philadelphia-transgender-woman-kiesha-jenkins-gunned-down-tuesday-morning?utm_source=policymicTWTR&utm_medium=main&utm_campaign=social

 

Kiesha Jenkins. Say her name. Rest in peace, you beautiful woman.

[Melech 9,900]

In the US. I think world wide would the number would be higher. 

[MonsterOfSpain 8,331]

Why won't people get already into the 21st century...

[Chic 20,830]

In the US. I think world wide would the number would be higher. 

Sumaya Dalmar is counted and she was Canadian. Although the Wikipedia list has 25-26 people listed...the rest are all from the U.S.

[Tokyo Rose 1,475]

Kiesha Jenkins. Say her name. Rest in peace, you beautiful woman.

She is gorgeous.  rest in peace

[Duella Dvil 11,977]

Is this strictly adhearing to MTF trans or are FTM getting slaughtered too?

I'm so sick of this ****.

These bigots need to be slaughtered i hope that they get there special corner in hell and that they get ****ed by that eyeless spike dude.

So. Done.

RIP to every transhuman LOST this year. No one deserves to be killed. (Except for people who murder, with intent to do so again, like maliciously...those ****ers can die)

 

Im slightly drunk this morning... I just saw this bottle of vodka and... It was just TOOO full of itself.. 

[Chic 20,830]

Is this strictly adhearing to MTF trans or are FTM getting slaughtered too?

I'm so sick of this ****.

These bigots need to be slaughtered i hope that they get there special corner in hell and that they get ****ed by that eyeless spike dude.

So. Done.

RIP to every transhuman LOST this year. No one deserves to be killed. (Except for people who murder, with intent to do so again, like maliciously...those ****ers can die)

 

Im slightly drunk this morning... I just saw this bottle of vodka and... It was just TOOO full of itself.. 

I don't think any FtM's were killed this year. Two things:

1.) FtM's on testosterone tend to pass better because rarely do ciswomen ever have the combination of masculine secondary s-x characteristics given by that hormone and so they aren't typically seen or suspected as anything but men.

2.) Heteros-xual men have been the sole perpetrators of these crimes, and I feel like there's a correlation between the idea of transitioning to a man not being as shameful societally, and they probably consider transmen to be women and aren't as likely to assault what they perceive to be a woman. 

 

Anyone who does this sorta sh!t has to be backwards, so they're probably too idiotic to realize transmen exist, let alone understand hormones/biology/transition enough to believe it's possible a transmen could pass as well as some of them do. I think the mentality is, "herp derp tranny man in a dress and high heels KILL IT"

[Spyro 8,438]

read this: http://6abc.com/news/police-logan-murder-likey-not-a-hate-crime/1020055/

They didn't murder her because she was transgendered.  she was a prostitute and the guys robbed her for money (which your original source left these two important points out for some reason).  I hate discrimination as much as the next guy, but we can't really label every transgendered person murder a "hate crime".  The same way a white woman robbed off her mercedez.  They didn't rob her cause of her skin color or gender, but because of her possessions.  

Yes, it's sad that she died, but we shouldn't spread false propaganda and false motives.

[Spyro 8,438]

 

Read above post

[Chic 20,830]

read this: http://6abc.com/news/police-logan-murder-likey-not-a-hate-crime/1020055/

They didn't murder her because she was transgendered.  she was a prostitute and the guys robbed her for money (which your original source left these two important points out for some reason).  I hate discrimination as much as the next guy, but we can't really label every transgendered person murder a "hate crime".  The same way a white woman robbed off her mercedez.  They didn't rob her cause of her skin color or gender, but because of her possessions.  

Yes, it's sad that she died, but we shouldn't spread false propaganda and false motives.

While that may be, it doesn't detract from the fact she is the 21st transgender individual to be murdered this year. It can be argued that her path to prostitution was inherently a part of her own personal transition as a means of funding, and while this may not be a hate crime (I did not intend to mislead anyone regardless), it does have its roots in transphobia (not by the perpetrators, but by society, which discriminates against trans people in such a way that it necessitates drastic efforts such as prostitution just to fund one's transition and/or survive).

[Spyro 8,438]

While that may be, it doesn't detract from the fact she is the 21st transgender individual to be murdered this year. It can be argued that her path to prostitution was inherently a part of her own personal transition as a means of funding, and while this may not be a hate crime (I did not intend to mislead anyone regardless), it does have its roots in transphobia (not by the perpetrators, but by society, which discriminates against trans people in such a way that it necessitates drastic efforts such as prostitution just to fund their transition and/or survive).

I'm not sure if tracking the # of transgendered individuals is a good idea.  I mean, as sad as it is, people get murdered everyday of every s-x and of every race.  I still don't get the reason in tracking the overall # of murdered transgendered people because it doesn't tell me a couple of things:

1) How many of these were intense hate crimes for the fact they were transgendered?

2) How many of these were caused by accidents?

I know you're doing it for a cause and that you can relate to this more than most of us on here, but don't go around with that number saying "21 transgendered people were murdered this year", because you're not really giving any context with those numbers.  Instead, of going around with the 21 number, just to stick to the ones that are hate crimes (and have been proven). 

In fact, I've read a couple of reports from the 21 people (including dis) from the murdered transpeople of 2015 and some were just robbed for money, had some other motive that didn't involed them being trans and didn't confirm a hate crime.  So, to me, the "21 trans people killed this year" is no different than "X # of white men killed this year" or "X # of Americans died this year".  Unless I have seen proof or a source saying it's a "Hate Crime" I remain unconvinced that it's a national problem that transpeople are getting murdered for their personal decisions.  I'm not going to argue that transpeople haven't or are currently getting murdered for being trans, but not as big as a number as "21"

 

Now, having said all that I really want to go listen to Adele rn

[Chic 20,830]

I'm not sure if tracking the # of transgendered individuals is a good idea.  I mean, as sad as it is, people get murdered everyday of every s-x and of every race.  I still don't get the reason in tracking the overall # of murdered transgendered people because it doesn't tell me a couple of things:

1) How many of these were intense hate crimes for the fact they were transgendered?

2) How many of these were caused by accidents?

I know you're doing it for a cause and that you can relate to this more than most of us on here, but don't go around with that number saying "21 transgendered people were murdered this year", because you're not really giving any context with those numbers.  Instead, of going around with the 21 number, just to stick to the ones that are hate crimes (and have been proven). 

In fact, I've read a couple of reports from the 21 people (including dis) from the murdered transpeople of 2015 and some were just robbed for money and didn't confirm a hate crime.  So, to me, the "21 trans people killed this year" is no different than "X # of white men killed this year" or "X # of Americans died this year".  Unless I have seen proof or a source saying it's a "Hate Crime" I remain unconvinced that it's a national problem that transpeople are getting murdered for their personal decisions.  I'm not going to argue that transpeople haven't or are currently getting murdered for being trans, but not as big as a number as "21"

 

Now, having said all that I really want to go listen to Adele rn

It's not easy to prove a hate crime as the nuances in favor of calling it such are really specific. This isn't counting the amount of trans hate crimes that go unreported, the trans people that are never found and the police bias against transwomen, especially those of color that would cause many of these cases to be labeled differently than a hate crime. It isn't a lie that 21 transgender women were murdered this year, I never specified they were due to hate crimes. But these are all worth noting because they do show patterns in trans behavior, how it correlates with the incentive of murder in others and the harsh realities of some of these situations.

For instance, nearly all of the transwomen murdered this year were transwomen of color. We have to learn why that is, we have to learn what life positions trans people are put in that causes them to be murdered like this. It's not just murder data, it's general statistical data, and like Laverne Cox said, the trans community is lacking in proper statistical representation and for anything to be accurate and more than anecdotal evidence, changes need to be made in the way transpeople are counted, categorized and recognized.

The number of transwomen murdered due to being trans is likely higher than 21, actually. These are the most accurate numbers we have at the moment besides amateur trans-specific surveys and studies, which are quite good and all, but there are no national numbers, so there is little to no accurate data on the amount of transpeople relative to the rest of the population, and while it may be that way because of legitimate population sizes and the fact many transpeople are ashamed to come out/went stealth/any number of reasons for not putting their classification in surveys and consensuses, there are changes that can and need to be made in the entire system.

This isn't just about screaming "hate crime!" and trying to prove it, this isn't even just about fighting transphobia and giving strength to the trans movement through people's disgust and outrage, it's about benefiting the movement behind the scenes through the calculated collection of statistical evidence to the cause, and advocating for a higher amount of legal and national recognition of the trans community.

Also, "transgender" is not an adjective.

[Alii 2,039]

Because letting her live her life in peace would've been too much. Disgusting.  

May she rest in peace. ??