Starr Brown was a 28 year old Black trans woman living in Memphis when she was killed by a gun shot to her left side.
Starr went to work on an April Thursday afternoon at Checkers, a fast food restaurant in her hometown of Memphis, Tennessee as she did many times. She worked past midnight. At 2:30 AM, she was sen on video camera leaving the premsis in her Pontiac G3 with a coworker.
At 9:30 AM, police responded to a one-vehicle crash on North Rolling Woods Drive near Scenic Highway in Memphis. They found the body of Starr Brown in the vehicle, according to Fox13. Starr had a gun wound on her left side.
Alexavier Williamson, 20, was the last person seen with Starr. He confessed to shooting her. Two weeks after her death, Williamson has been booked on second degree murder charges. Police have not released a motive.
Sadly, Starr’s death was compounded by misgendering and deadnaming by law enforcement, media, and the funeral home.
Honoring Starr
Starr was born in Memphis, Tennessee where she was living at the time of her death. She was working at Checker’s but defined her career as a digital creator. Her social are filled with self-created video content
She was a graduate of Raleigh-Egypt High School. She worked at multiple food service positions and also as a bag handler for FedEx. Star’s Facebook page shows she liked fashion, tattoo art, and makeup. She followed multiple Black owned businesses and entrepreneurial pages.
Starr’s post indicate she was very close to her nieces and nephews, took great joy in being an aunt. She had friends she loved. It also clear that her family went looking for her immediately on April 19. She wasn’t gone 12 hours and they went to find her.
Still this post from 2022 caught my attention
I think this shows how all of us can experience loneliness and regrets about our relationships. Heartfelt, loving tributes fill social media with love for Starr, but I wonder how many of us can read what she shared here and realize how we need to take action now with our loved ones. The prescience of this post is a little haunting.
I also wonder about the misgendering and deadnaming. Did Starr feel the effects of not being seen for her true self? Was that the barrier in her relationships with her friends?
HRC has also noted that this is not the first time that Starr had been shot; in October 2023, she was shot during an attempted robbery while waiting for an Uber.
The Context
Starr Brown is the 16th person whose death is recorded in 2024. She is the 10th trans woman on this list, the 12th trans person. of color, the fourth Black trans woman, and the sixth Black trans person. As of today, we have documented the death of a trans neighbor every 7.75 days.
I’ve documented six other victims with ties to Tennessee. Kitty Monroe (2022) Danyale Johnson (2021) Angel Haynes (2020) Jazzaline Ware (2019) Naomie Skinner (2022) Poe Black (2021). Both Naomie and Poe lived in Tennessee, but were out of state when they were killed.
Rest in power, Starr. Your enthusiasm for life, your love of your family, and your hope for stronger bonds with your friends remind us of your humanity and all that we have in common with you. I hope somewhere you know that your loved ones came looking for you. I hope that’s a comfort to everyone. I am sorry we did not keep your safe.
May your memory be a revolution.
This is our list
This is our list of transgender, nonbinary, and gender nonconforming neighbors who have been victims of the campaign of terror in 2024. Please do not copy, modify, or share this list without attribution.
- Kitty Monroe – January 1, 2024. Phoenix, Arizona. Age 43.
- Nex Benedict – February 8, 2024. Owasso, Oklahoma. Age 16.
- Righteous Torrence ‘T K’ Chevy Hill – February 29, Atlanta. Georgia. Age 35.
- Reyna Hernandez – Between Feb 28 and March 28, location TBD. Age 54.
- Diamond Cherish Brigman – March 16, 2024, Houston, Texas. Age 36.
- Alex Franco – March 19, 2024. Salt Lake City, Utah. Age 21.
- Meraxes Medina – March 19, 2024, Los Angeles, California. Age 24.
- Cecilia Gentili – February 6, 2024, New YorkCity, New York. Age 52.
- Ryan Zimmerman – Sept 2015, Columbus OH Age 21 Murdered 2016, Identified 2020, reported 2024.
- Lagend Billions aka Tee Arnold – April 7, 2024, Miami, Ohio. Age 36.
- África Parrilla García – February 2, 2024, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Age 25.
- Nevaeh ‘River’ Goddard – April 5, 2024,. Stow, Massachusetts. Age 17,
- Andrea Doria Dos Passos – April 22, 2024, Miami, Florida. Age 37.
- Sasha Williams – January 26, 2024, Las Vegas, Nevada. Age 36.
- Kita Bee – May 3, 2024, Kansas City, Missouri. Age 46.
- Starr Brown – April 19, Memphis, Tennessee. Age 28.
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