Serenity Hollis, a 24-year-old black trans woman, is the 25th known trans or gender diverse person to have been killed in the US this year after she was found dead in Albany, Georgia on May 8. According to the Human Rights Campaign (HCR), Hollis was shot in the early hours of the morning on Highland Avenue, with local police confirming that her death is being investigated as a potential hate crime.
Although police have not yet identified any suspects, Hollis’s mother, Robyn Osberry, said: “The person that’s responsible has no idea what they took from us…I absolutely want to see that justice is served.” Hollis’s death comes four days after the murders of Danny Henson and Sophie Vasquez, who were both trans women of colour. Whispering Wind Bear Spirit, an Indigenous non-binary person, was also killed during the same week.
Following Hollis’s death, Tori Cooper, HRC director of community engagement for the Transgender Justice Initiative, said: “We’re less than halfway through the year and we’re already on track to break 2020’s devastating record for incidents of fatal violence against transgender and gender non-conforming people. This outbreak of violence against transgender people, particularly black trans women, must stop.”
2020 was the deadliest year on record for trans Americans, with 44 recorded deaths, the majority of whom were black trans women.
