Jessi Hart, a 42-year-old transgender woman who experienced poverty and housing insecurity, was found dead on Oct. 17 in Oregon. Authorities suspect the game is unwarranted, making it at least 43rd trans, non-binary, or sexually inconsistent. died of violence in the US this year.
Hart’s body was found in a wooded area near Banks, a small town 25 miles west of Portland. Willamett’s week reports. Detectives believe she died about two weeks earlier.
Hart was introduced to va Willamett’s week story of June about Portland residents living in motels “as a last resort before homelessness,” the newspaper notes. She has been experiencing housing insecurity since the transition in 2016. She said she lost her construction business and home and became estranged from most of her family as a result of the transition.
She and her 13-year-old son Caleb “bounced from a women’s shelter and a friend’s apartment to a motel,” she says. Willamett’s week. She also had an adult daughter who lived in another part of Oregon.
Soon after the story was published, she lost a subsidized motel room, lived in a car for a while, while Caleb stayed with a friend, and eventually got another motel room with the help of a nonprofit.
“Jessi Hart lived a hard life,” Willamett’s week reports. “She felt that people looked at her differently because she had crossed over, and she felt that she had never endured well enough in her new body. She spoke openly about poverty and the misery associated with it that she did not feel. “
But she and Caleb had a close and supportive relationship, showing affection and completing strikes, the newspaper writes. She described Caleb as a “super-smart kid,” which is narrative Willamette Week, “He deals with physics. You step up to him and talk about laws, it’s quantum mechanics. He taught me about it: the top layer of a black hole.”
Hart had a girlfriend, Audrey Savage, who told the newspaper: “I’m going to miss everything about her. She was intelligent, thoughtful and caring and I liked her specialties. Full knee-length shorts are added things with stretch pants. She also took almost all my hats. When they found her, they found her in my camouflage hat. “
The Washington County Sheriff’s Office found Hart’s car, a 2006 black Saab, that was painted white, though it is not known if the car was near the spot where her body was found. Sheriff’s officers are asking anyone who has recently been in contact with Hart to call (503) 846-2700.
“Housing insecurity often puts so many people in our community in dangerous and worrying situations,” said Tori Cooper, director of community engagement for the Transgender Justice Initiative of the Human Rights Campaign. press release. “If Jessi Hart had access to a safe apartment, it’s possible she would still be with us today. As transgender people, we often face many challenges and uncertainties, including housing and employment security, and unfortunately these situations can lead to very unfortunate outcomes. My heart and the heart of the community go to her son Caleb.
The number of trans, non-binary and sexually incompatible Americans lost to violence in 2021 is approaching 2020 record 44. There are probably many more in a given year, as the police or the media misidentify and name some victims dead or do not report their deaths at all.