At least 36 transgender individuals have been killed in the U.S. this year, with half of the victims being Black transgender women

This blog is originally appeared at Them.

A new report sheds light on the “epidemic of violence” targeting transgender and gender non-conforming individuals.

This article addresses violence against transgender individuals and includes references to graphic content.

The epidemic of fatal violence against transgender individuals in the United States shows no signs of slowing down, with the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) documenting at least 36 killings over the past year. Half of these victims, including Honee Daniels, Kassim Omar, Redd, Vanity Williams, and others, were Black trans women.

The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), which has been tracking the murders of transgender individuals since 2013, released its 2024 report on the “Epidemic of Violence Against the Transgender & Gender-Expansive Community in the U.S.” on Tuesday. The report covers deaths between the day after Trans Day of Remembrance 2023 (November 21, 2023) and November 20, 2024. HRC highlighted that a disproportionate number of victims in the past year were young people of color—75% of all victims were people of color, and 54.3% were under the age of 35. Among the youngest victims was 14-year-old Pauly Likens, a trans girl who was tragically killed and dismembered in her Pennsylvania hometown in June, marking the youngest recorded death. Other young trans victims included 18-year-old Jazzlyn Johnson and 17-year-old Tayy Dior Thomas.

Tori Cooper, Director of Community Engagement for the Transgender Justice Initiative at HRC, stated that transphobia is fueled by disinformation, rhetoric, and ideologies that treat the transgender community as political tools, ignoring their right to live free from fear of harm or death. She pointed out the “disturbing reality” that half of the victims were Black trans women, a reflection of the ways in which racism, misogynoir, sexism, transphobia, and other societal issues disproportionately affect the trans community.

Cooper concluded, “In spite of these tragedies, I choose to remember the beauty brought to the world by those victims who left this earth far too soon and will celebrate their memories by continuing to fight for them through the Trans Justice Initiative’s advocacy and our leadership development work.”

While the statistics in the report are bleak, there was one slightly positive development. According to the report, 41.7% of victims were initially misgendered by the media or law enforcement. While still a significant number, this is the lowest percentage the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has recorded since it began tracking this data in 2013. However, the report also highlights some alarming “firsts.” For the first time since 2013, transgender individuals were killed in Minnesota, Utah, and Nevada.

The HRC notes that the report is released at a critical moment for the transgender community in the U.S. Last June, for the first time in its history, the organization declared a state of emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans, citing the unprecedented number of anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced in state legislatures across the country that year. The report also reflects the broader political climate, with former President Donald Trump, who ran on a platform that scapegoated trans people and pledged to ban gender-affirming care for trans youth, recently re-elected. His administration has appointed numerous anti-trans figures, such as Elon Musk, JD Vance, and Matt Gaetz, to key positions in the White House.