A black transgender woman was tragically killed in Baltimore, Maryland. She was shot five times, her body hidden under a blanket in an alley.
Tai’Vion Lathan, 24, was confirmed dead at 10:00 a.m. by Baltimore police on August 4. According to Desire Bandz, Maryland Safe Haven’s Drop-In Center coordinator, “It really hurts to know that this is another one. It should not be another one. We really need support right now.” Bandz describes the manner of Lathan’s death as it demonstrates “the inhumanity that the person who killed her has.”
Lathan was described as someone who was outgoing and lived life unapologetically by her friends and family. “She was just who she was, a very outgoing person, a sweetheart,” Carla Stokes, Lathan’s Aunt tells CBS.
According to the Human Rights Campaign, Lathan’s death is at least the 24th violent killing of a transgender or gender expansive person in 2024: “We say ‘at least’ because too often these deaths go unreported—or misreported.” She is one of at least 13 black transgender women who have died due to violence this year. Her death is one of 28 similar killings in Baltimore over the last five years per the Maryland Trans Survey. The survey shows that 55.4% of the state’s transgender community has experienced threats of violence at least once in their life.
Police have not released details regarding any suspects in connection to Lathan’s death. In a statement to WMAR, Mayor Brandon Scott says, “We’re going to make sure, just like every single homicide case that we have in the city, every nonfatal shooting that we have in the city, that the women and men in BPD track those people down and do their due diligence.” Mayor Scott added that this incident was a result of a “culture of violence.”
At this time, a fundraiser to cover Lathan’s funeral expenses has surpassed its $6000 goal by at least $250, but the price of a human life far exceeds that amount. A vigil was held for Lathan on August 16.
Mayor Brandon Scott adds, “We’re going to continue to work alongside the LGBTQ+ community to make sure we are doing everything to protect them, just as we do everybody else in the city of Baltimore.”
“I can’t take no more. I’m tired of losing my people. I’m tired of having to be scared to be myself,” Lathan’s friend Koryne Davis said. “I’m tired of having to walk on eggshells because I am who I am.”
Screenshot courtesy of social media
