The seventh murder of an American transgender woman this year occurred this week, The Human Rights Campaign reports.
Amia Tyrae Berryman, 28, a transgender woman of color was shot in Baton Rouge, Louisiana on Monday. Her body was found by police in a motel.
Amia Tyrae Berryman
Say her name
Never forget it#StopKillingUs
How many more before it stops? How much more of our blood and our tears will it take?
Amia, you weren't even 30 years old. This world is lessened by your absence. I'll remember your name.
— Sekhet Bast Ra (@Sekhet_Bast_Ra) March 27, 2018
At this time, police have no suspects, and there is very little information about the case. An autopsy is scheduled for this week.
Berryman's death signifies an alarming trend of the killing of transgender women. According to Pgh Lesbian Correspondents, the other seven trans women who have been killed in 2018 are:
Christa Leigh Steele-Knudslien, 42, Massachusetts (January 6)
Viccky Gutierrez, 33, Los Angeles (January 9)
Tonya ‘Kita’ Harvey, 35, Buffalo, New York (February 6)
Celine Walker, 36, Jacksonville, Florida (February 4),
Phylicia Mitchell, 46, Cleveland, Ohio (February 23),
Zakaria Fry, 28, Stanley, New Mexico (February 19),
The Human Right Campaign has been actively tracking the murders of transgender women. According to the organization's findings, 112 transgender and non-binary women have been killed since 2013. Of that number, 63 have been victims of gun violence.
In an interview with Mic, NeVaa White, a close friend of Berryman's said, “She didn’t have much support [from] family with her lifestyle so she made family with her peers in the LGBT community of Baton Rouge.”
Another one of her friends posted on social media, “Amia Tyrae R.I.P. you were such a sweet person with a big heart … Rest well my friend.”
This post was originally published on Blavity.com.