A black transgender Bee Love Slater found burned to death in Florida

The body of a transgender black woman was found in a car burned in Clewiston, Florida last week. According to the Human Rights Campaign, Bee Love Slater is the 18th transgender woman to be murdered in 2019.

Investigators in Hendry County identified Slater, 23, several days after finding the body of his vehicle burned, reports WINK, a CBS Fort Myers affiliate. Captain Susan Harelle stated that the body was burned to the point of no longer being recognized.

The investigation is ongoing and the sheriff's office has stated that the hate crime could not be upheld until a clear motive is found. But Love's best friend, Kenard Wade, said Slater was targeted as a member of the LGBTQ community.

"She really, really had a good heart," Wade told Wink. "She would never hurt anyone, would never put anyone in danger.How someone could go to the extreme to get rid of her?"

According to Wade, Slater had received threats the night of the fire. She told him by text that she wanted to leave town to avoid trouble.

"The love of the bees was nice to all the people with whom she came into contact and her presence touched me during the four months that I shared with her, it was unbelievable " Dezmond Bass, who helped coordinate Slater's candlelight vigil, wrote on Facebook.

Slater's death highlights a continuing trend of violence against transgender people. Slater is the 18th transgender woman known to be murdered this year, the HRC said. Last year, at least 26 transgender people were killed. in 2017, this number reached a record with at least 29 deaths.

Florida's hate crime laws do not specifically support transgender people and there is no protection at the federal level. The Trump administration continues to cancel key safeguards for LGBTQ Community.

"Our society must work for transsexuals to live without fear," Florida's ACLU said Thursday.

The week of Slater's death, Bailey Reeves, a 17-year-old transgender woman from Baltimore, was shot dead on Labor Day. It was the fifth shot of the night, police said.

In June, the American Medical Association called the epidemic deadly attacks on transgender people of color. He proposed a plan to combat violence, including informing citizens of alarming statistics on these hate crimes, advocating for tougher law enforcement policies and improving LGBTQ access. to mental health care.

"According to the available information, the deadly violence against transgender people is increasing in the United States and most of the victims are black transgender women," said S. Bobby Mukkamala, a member of the board of directors of the United States. AMA, "The number of victims could be even higher better data collection by law enforcement forces is needed to create strategies to prevent anti-transgender violence."