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Louisiana Moms Demand Action Statement on Shooting Death of Transgender Woman in New Orleans

2.27.2017

NEW ORLEANS — Today the Louisiana chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, part of Everytown for Gun Safety, released a statement following the shooting death of Chyna Doll Dupree. Early Saturday evening, Dupree was shot and killed in the parking lot of a shopping center in New Orleans. Dupree was a popular touring performer and a native of New Orleans. Eight to ten shots were fired during the incident, and Dupree was pronounced dead at the scene. So far, law enforcement has not identified a suspected killer.

Dupree is at least the fifth transgender woman murdered nationwide so far this year. All were trans women of color, and four out of the five (80 percent) were killed with guns. The shooting death of Chyna Dupree closely follows those of Keke Collier in Chicago and Jojo Striker in Toledo, Ohio. A list compiled by The Advocate of transgender people killed nationwide in 2016 showed that more than half (52 percent) were killed with guns.

STATEMENT FROM HENRIETTA TREYZ, VOLUNTEER WITH THE LOUISIANA CHAPTER OF MOMS DEMAND ACTION FOR GUN SENSE IN AMERICA:

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Chyna Doll Dupree, who is now the fifth trans woman to be killed in 2017. Tragedies like her death serve as a stark reminder of the gun violence that kills more than 90 Americans and injures hundreds more every day. Too often, dangerous people emboldened by our lax gun laws take out their hatred on the people most in need of our support. Chyna’s death is a sad reminder of how our lax gun laws endanger communities that are already marginalized. We can no longer sit idly by and let gun violence shatter entire communities. We will not tolerate nor accept these shootings as the new normal. More must be done to disarm hate and ensure that all people, including the most marginalized among us, are protected from the threat of gun violence. We urge all those who are deeply affected and angered by this shooting to join us in calling on our lawmakers to employ common-sense solutions to combat gun violence in our country. We can and must be better than this.”