Tasiyah
“Siyah” Woodland, an 18-year-old Black transgender woman,
was found shot to death near a bar in Mechanicsville, Md.,
last week.
She is at
least the eighth trans, nonbinary, or gender-nonconforming person to die by
violence in the U.S. this year.
Deputies from
the St. Mary County Sheriff’s Office were called to the parking lot of the Big
Dogs in Paradise bar in Mechanicsville due to a report that gunshots were
fired, TV station WMAR reports. They found Woodland nearby, dead after
being shot several times. They do not think her gender identity was a factor in
the crime, and they are calling it an isolated incident, according to the
station. Some media and police reports misgendered and deadnamed her.
Woodland, who
lived in Lexington Park, Md., had attended Great Mills High School and was
studying at the College of Southern Maryland. She worked at a Hollister
clothing store.
“She had
multiple social media profiles, but – heartbreakingly – set up what she
described as her ‘new & last page’ two days before her death,” Sue Kerr
reports at Pittsburgh Lesbian Correspondents.“She had hopes,
ambitions, dreams. She celebrated her accomplishments and triumphs. All things
she deserved, things ripped away from her by gun violence and the transphobia
and misogynoir that permeates our society.”
Her family has
started a GoFundMe campaign to cover funeral expenses. The page
describes Woodland as “high spirited and protective of those she loved.” After
her mother’s death, Woodland “got the courage to start living in her truth and
started her transition, which her family accepted with open arms,” the page
notes.
The sheriff’s
office has been in touch with Woodland’s family, PFLAG Southern Maryland, and
local LGBTQ+ residents “to address concerns about personal and public safety,”
WMAR reports.
The sheriff’s
department asks that anyone with information about the crime call Detective
David Lawrence at (301) 475-4200, ext. 78130, or email him at
david.lawrence@stmarycountymd.gov.
SOURCE: ADVOCATE
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