HOUSTON – The Texas chapters of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, both part of Everytown for Gun Safety’s grassroots network, released the following statements in response to the March 16 shooting of 36-year-old Diamond Brigman, a Black trans woman who was shot and killed in southwest Houston early Saturday morning. The shooter has not yet been identified by police.
On Tuesday, friends of Brigman gathered to mourn her death, remarking that her killing is “a stark reminder of the violence that trans women, especially Black trans women, face.” From January 2017 to December 2023, there were at least 263 homicides of transgender and gender expansive people in the United States, 193 of which were with a gun. Further, these tragedies have a startlingly disproportionate impact. More than six in ten gun homicides of transgender and gender-expansive people were of Black trans women. It’s also important to remember that there have likely been more deaths that have gone unreported or victims who have been misgendered.
“Diamond Brigman should be alive today,” said Becky George, Chief Movement Building Officer at Everytown for Gun Safety. “The disproportionate impact of gun violence on transgender people and in particular, Black trans women, is a crisis that continues to devastate communities and demands our attention. Any threat to the safety of our trans and gender-expansive neighbors should be taken as an affront to us all. We won’t stop working to make our communities safe—for everyone.”
“I am angry and saddened to learn of the horrific shooting of Diamond Brigman. While we wait for more details, it is devastating that her friends and family are left to wonder if she was targeted simply for existing as her authentic self,” said Isha Archer, a volunteer with the Texas chapter of Moms Demand Action. “Our hearts are with her loved ones but thoughts and prayers will never be enough. How many Black trans women have to be targeted by gun violence before lawmakers make meaningful strides to disarm hate across Texas? Trans people have the right to exist in peace, protected against the threat of gun violence.”
This tragic trend isn’t happening in a vacuum. Transgender people are 2.5 times as likely to be victims of violence as cisgender people. As of February this year, 130 anti-trans bills have been filed in states across the country. Last session in Texas, 141 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were introduced, making Texas responsible for one in five of all anti-LGTBQ+ bills introduced nationwide in 2023. Anti-LGBTQ+ political attacks & extremism fuel real-life violence. Hateful rhetoric has real-life consequences for the LGBTQ+ community. And when that kind of hate is paired with unfettered access to firearms, the consequences become even more deadly. To keep trans and gender-expansive people safe, lawmakers at every level must take action to prioritize legislation that disarms hate and protects marginalized groups from gun violence.
Texas has weak gun laws. In an average year, 3,996 people die by guns in Texas, and 5,556 more are wounded. Guns are the leading cause of death among children and teens in Texas. More information on gun violence in Texas is available here.
Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund has tracked homicides of transgender and gender non-conforming people in the U.S. since 2017. In addition to breaking down gun violence to the state- and county level, the platform includes a database of known trans or gender-nonconforming homicide victims in the United States.
