Two-Spirit Native American, Acey D. Morrison, Killed in South Dakota

Acey D. Morrison, a Two-Spirit member of the Lakota tribe, was shot to death August 21 in her hometown of Rapid City, S.D.

She is one of 30 transgender, gender-nonconforming, or nonbinary people reported to have died by violence in 2022. There are likely many more such deaths that go unreported or misreported. Initial news coverage misgendered Morrison, according to the Human Rights Campaign.

Few details have been released about her death. She was found in a home in Rapid City, local TV station KELO reports. The case is still under investigation.

Morrison was a "kindhearted, down to earth, joyous, respectful, and loving soul," says an obituary published by Native Sun News. "She was a helpful and giving person who was always there for her family and friends. Acey always put a smile on others and had those around her laughing and happy. ... We will remember her as who she was to each of us: authentic, and unapologetic."

"It's clear that Acey was loved in this world," Tori Cooper, director of community engagement for HRC's Transgender Justice Initiative, said in a press release. "My heart hurts for those who now must grieve her absence. We are committed to ending this epidemic of violence against gender-nonconforming people."

Her death is also an indicator of the toll of gun violence. More than 10,000 hate crimes in the U.S. involve a firearm each year, which equates to more than 28 each day, according to a 2020 report from HRC, Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, Giffords Law Center, and Equality Florida titled "Remembering and Honoring Pulse: Anti-LGBTQ Bias and Guns Are Taking Lives of Countless LGBTQ People."

In addition, according to the 2017-2022 Transgender Homicide Tracker, the vast majority of confirmed homicides against transgender people have involved a gun, with Black transgender women accounting for 73 percent of all transgender gun homicide victims.