A brutal attack on two transgender
women in the Washington D.C. area has left one dead and a second
seriously injured, gay weekly the Washington
Blade reported.
Twenty-one year old Tyli'a “NaNa Boo”
Mack, also known as Joshua Mack, and a second unidentified
transgender woman were stabbed Wednesday afternoon in the 200 block
of Q Street N.W.
Mack was taken to Howard University
Hospital, where she was pronounced dead at 3:02PM, police said. The
second victim is in stable condition but remains hospitalized.
Police have tentatively classified the
case as a potential hate crime, according to a release issued by the
Gay and Lesbian Liaison Unit (GLLU) of the Washington D.C.
Metropolitan Police Department.
“This determination is based on some
information obtained during the early stages of the investigation
that indicated some homophobic language may have been used during the
attack,” the group said.
The women were on route to the offices
of Transgender Health Empowerment (THE), a transgender support
center, according to a THE client who spoke with the surviving victim
on Thursday. The pair were approached by a man, who had been walking
with a woman, at the Giant Supermarket located on Eighth Street N.W.
Mack and the man began an argument at the supermarket that continued
as the women continued walking towards the THE offices. The argument
escalated into a fight after the pair hiked about a mile, or 10
blocks, and the man stabbed both women, the THE client said.
Anthony Hall, executive director of
THE, said he was “appalled, sickened and saddened” over the
double stabbing.
“As members of the transgender
community, we are too well aware of the mental and physical effects
of threats and violence,” Hall said in a statement. “The violent
attack on August 26 is one in a long string of violence against
transgender people the Metro D.C. area.”
District police are offering a $25,000
reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the
person or persons responsible for the crime.