Remembering Andrea Doria Dos Passos, transgender woman killed in Miami
Andrea is at least the 33rd transgender person killed in Florida since HRC began tracking fatal violence in 2013–and the second transgender person killed in Florida in the last month alone, with her death occurring just two weeks after the death of Tee “Lagend Billions” Arnold, who was killed in Hallandale Beach just outside of Miami. As of this writing, Florida is home to the second highest number of incidents of fatal violence against the trans community in any state since HRC tracking began; 33 of the 350 victims identified over the last 11 years were in Florida, or more than 1 in 10 (13.2%) of all victims.
At the state level, transgender and gender non-conforming people in Florida are explicitly protected from discrimination in employment, housing, education and public spaces; however, Florida does have multiple anti-LGBTQ+ and anti-transgender laws on its books, and Florida does not include gender identity as a protected characteristic in its hate crimes law. Though we have recently seen some political gains that support and affirm transgender people, we have also faced unprecedented anti-LGBTQ+ attacks in the states. In June 2023, the Human Rights Campaign declared a National State of Emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans, as a result of the more than 550 anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced into state houses that year, over 80 of which were signed into law—more than in any other year.
We must demand better from our elected officials and reject harmful anti-transgender legislation at the local, state and federal levels, while also considering every possible way to make ending this violence a reality. It is clear that fatal violence disproportionately affects transgender women of color, especially Black transgender women. The intersections of racism, transphobia, sexism, biphobia and homophobia conspire to deprive them of necessities to live and thrive, so we must all work together to cultivate acceptance, reject hate and end stigma for everyone in the trans and gender non-conforming community.
