Two more Black trans women were murdered in America.
On February 4, Alexus Braxton, also known as Kimmy Icon Braxton, was murdered in Miami. According to Gay City News, officers from the Miami-Dade Police Department found Braxton’s body around 10:31 p.m. at the California Club Condominiums at 915 North East 199 Street. Police are currently investigating Braxton’s death as a homicide and are not ruling out a hate crime.
“We’re not discarding the possibility that it can potentially go that route as an additional charge,” Miami-Dade Police Department spokesperson Detective Colome told GCN. “But as of right now we’re definitely needing the assistance of anyone who can give us any information.”
The police have yet to disclose any more information about Baxton’s death because they fear it would “jeopardize the case.”
Meanwhile, Alexus Braxton’s death is not the only one of its kind in the past week. 21-year-old Fifty Bandz died on January 28 in Baton Rogue, Louisiana. According to Baton Rouge’s Advocate, Bandz was found dead of gunshot wounds. Police believe Bandz was killed by her lover in the midst of an argument.
The police quickly found and arrested 20-year-old Michael Brooks after interviewing friends of Fifty. Reports from friends stated that the relationship was “very volatile” and that Brooks’ unwillingess to be “open or forthcoming” about dating Bandz “caused personal problems.” Last summer, Brooks threatened to kill Fifty Bandz for posting online videos of the two together. The two then broke up before getting back together days before the murder.
Both deaths are a reminder that there is a major issue with violence placed against trans people and specifically Black trans women. In just a month and a half, at least six trans people have been murdered on American soil.
“In just one month, multiple transgender or gender non-conforming people have been killed, four of whom were Black trans women,” said Tori Cooper, HRC Director of Community Engagement for the Transgender Justice Initiative. “This level of violence is infuriating and heartbreaking. This is an epidemic of violence that must be stopped. We will continue to affirm that Black Trans Lives Matter and say the names of those we have lost, including Fifty Bandz, but we must do more. Fifty was killed by someone she knew — if we can’t trust the people we know, who can we trust? We need everyone to take action to bring this horrific violence to an end.”
Source: Gay City News, Baton Rouge’s Advocate,
