Vontashia Bell
Age 1830 Aug 2018
Shreveport, Louisiana (USA)
Shot
TDoR list ref: tgeu/30-Aug-2018/Vontashia Bell
Vontashia's body was found just before 5am on 30th August. She had been shot in the chest and wrist.
Shreveport, LA - Earlier today in Shreveport, a young transgender woman was murdered. She is sadly not the first transgender woman of color to be killed in Louisiana this year.
Violence against trans people, particularly against trans women, is a plague that continues to affect our cities and communities across the state. City and state leadership must work together with the trans community to curb this violence.
Vontashia Bell must not die in vain. Her murder is a reminder of the current climate and national discourse on trans issues. Dehumanizing language and actions lower the barriers to this kind of senseless violence. Shreveport and Louisiana leaders must speak out against these killings, against the ongoing, systemic devaluation of trans people that pervades our media and politics, and against the institutional racism that places almost all of this burden on trans women of color.
As we mourn the loss of Vontashia, we must double down our efforts to ensure that all trans people across the state have access to jobs, education, housing, and safe neighborhoods.
Rest in power, sister. The Advocate and Ksla, 30.08.2018
https://gunmemorial.org/2018/08/30/vontashia-bell
https://www.hrc.org/news/hrc-mourns-the-loss-of-vontashia-bell-a-trans-woman-killed-in-louisiana
https://sinceparkland.org/people/vontashia-bell/
https://www.ksla.com/2018/08/31/year-old-murder-victims-gender-preference-could-aid-investigators/
http://www.ksla.com/2018/08/30/man-shot-killed-west-cedar-grove-suspect-sought/
