Dozens of trans people have been violently killed in the U.S. this year. These are the latest numbers

At least 32 trans and gender nonconforming people in the U.S. have been killed so far in 2022—a number that’s on track to be a marked decrease from last year’s record high of 57 violent deaths. 

Advocates note the importance of keeping track of the numbers in the face of an ongoing epidemic of violence against trans people in the U.S.—violence that is occurring in both interpersonal and legislative arenas.

The “negative rhetoric and stigma aimed by anti-equality political leaders and public figures at transgender and non-binary people … [has been] unprecedented [in 2022],” Shoshana Goldberg, director of public education and research for the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation, said in a statement that accompanied her organization’s Wednesday release of its annual report on violence.

“You can’t separate that from the horrific, ongoing violence against transgender people,” Goldberg added. 

Scores of anti-LGBTQ2S+ bills have been tabled this year alone, including bans on doctors performing gender-affirming care and bans on trans youth playing sports or using bathrooms that match their gender identity. Many are still being debated, while others have been passed.

Conservative lawmakers are also moving to ban queer books in schools and libraries, and introducing legislation mirroring Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” law aimed at restricting discussion about LGBTQ2S+ people and issues in schools. 

Currently, there are no public reports that track trans and gender nonconfirming deaths in Canada. The HRC is a Washington, D.C.-based organization that fights for queer rights at the national level. Their website maintains memorial pages for those who have lost their lives.

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HRC started tracking reported violence nearly a decade ago. Since then, it has recorded at least 300 violent deaths. The victims have been overwhelmingly Black, younger than 35 and killed with guns. 

The deadliest year on record was 2021 when at least 57 trans and gender nonconforming people were killed. On average, about 30 deaths are recorded each year. But, the organization cautions, the numbers assume under-reporting due in part to misgendering by police agencies. 

Among other highlights from the HRC’s reporting dating back to 2013:

• 15 people have been killed by police or while incarcerated in jails, prisons or ICE detention centres, including two in 2022
• In 40 percent of cases, the person responsible for the deaths remains unknown or at large
• Of cases with a known killer, 65 percent knew the victims 
• Almost 19 percent of people were killed by an intimate partner 
• Nearly 10 percent were killed by a friend or family member
• More than 36 percent were killed by an acquaintance
• 70 percent were initially misgendered by the media and/or police.

The 2022 deaths included in the report happened in 17 states. Michigan and Florida tied for the most deaths with four each. Pennsylvania and Texas tied for a close second with three each. 

In the past decade, deaths in Texas have accounted for 10 percent of those recorded, the HRC said. Florida, which has also been front and centre in the fight for trans rights, accounted for nine percent of deaths. 

Transgender Day of Remembrance, an international observance honouring those killed by anti-trans violence and drawing attention to the threats trans people face, is on Sunday (Nov 20).