Sam Nordquist Vigil Honors Trans Lives Lives lost since the beginning of 2025

Several LGBTQIA+ Advocacy organizations and faith leaders had northernquists in New York City on Friday and all transgender and gender-non-forming life in New York, which has been lost since the beginning of 2025.

North quist, a 24-year-old black transgender man from Minnesota, was killed in the state of New York in early February after more than a month of violent abuse and torture.

The LGBTQIA+ community in the USA and New York shaked his death, a state that many consider for LGBTQIA+ residents as safe haven.

Kei Williams, the interim executive director of the new Pride Agenda, told Prism that the organizers of the municipality had convened the vigil to give LGBTQIA+ New York a safe place to mourn Nordquist's death.

“I think it is really important that LGBTQ-NEW Yorker-Ins especially at this time, with this current political environment, in which there are so many targeted attacks, especially against the transgender and gender-not-conforming community Create that we have safe spaces so that we can bring together, they giggle with each other through moments of deep difficulties, ”said Williams.

The New York chapters of LGBTQ+ People (Pflag), the parents and families of LGBTQ+ People (Pflag), the Ali Forney Center, the New York Transgender Advocacy Group, the Reclaim Pride Coalition and transformative schools organized the Vigil, which organized a large meeting pulled.

Community members packed the first and second floor of the church of the village in Lower Manhattan. Many brought bouquets of flowers, which they put under memorial signs near the church's altar.

Several organizers talked about the vigil and headed parishioners to sing a hymn and to organize a moment of silence to honor the transgender and gender-not-compliant people whose lives have been lost since the beginning of the year, including Tahiry Broom, A 29-year-old, a 29-year-old, a 29-year-old black transgender woman who was killed in Michigan on February 9th.

Anti-transfer power in the USA has increased in recent years. The human rights campaign reported that at least 32 transgender and gender-specific people were killed in 2024. Fifty percent of the black transgender women died in 2024.

During the vigil, Clark Wolff Hamel, reigning Executive Director of Pflag-NYC, stated the disproportionate anti-transferer control of the black community and emphasized the importance of solidarity.

“I know and believe deeply, and believe that as a resistant community. We will continue to endeavor to defend themselves and to ask for justice for all of our parishioners, ”said Hamel. He also said that the investigators for Nordquist's death should not exclude hate crimes “so quickly”.

The investigators in Nordquist's case said there is no evidence that his killing is a hate crime, although the local authorities have not excluded the possibility. So far, seven people have been charged with regard to Nordquist's death, five because of the second degree murder.

According to reports, several of its attackers who have recorded a former partner knew. Hamel said that the exclusion of hate crushing accusations based on the identities of the attackers or the relationships with the north quist ignored that “hate files can be committed by anyone”.

Hamel also spoke of the fact that people “mourn” and make room for their reactions.

“Translove is something that can never be lost,” he said. “It's too big. It radiates and extends and it gets stronger every day. It is complicated to feel this deep loss and this persistent sense of love. But that is grief, that's loss. “

Other speakers at the vigilant included Revs. Jeff Wells, leading pastor of the church of the village, and Yunus Coldman, co-facilitator and north-east regional coordinator for Trans Saints, a Ministry of the Fellowship of Profirming Ministries. Both spoke about the importance of LGBTQIA+ inclusion, especially within the church.

“Sam was hit with a hard reality, the hard reality of our current political and religious climate – a climate that too often loves and dignity like Sam, how I, how many of us who are easy to look for After love that confirms life, ”said Coldman, who is black and transgender.

In an interview with Prism, Carla Smith, CEO of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, a partner of many of the Host organizations of the vigil, the Vigil describes the Vigil, although due to “very devastating Situation.”

“It is painful, but it is a nice way for the community to come together and celebrate the life of a person and to think about many other people [who’ve] Gone and was taken by us too, ”said Smith.

The vigil with a reproduction of “A change will come” by Sam Cooke, a song that is seen as an anthem of the civil rights movement. Hamel then thanked the community members for their participation.

“I hope that if you leave this room, wear the love you felt with you here wherever you go,” he said.

Editorial team:
Sahar Fatima, main editor
Carolyn Copeland, top editor
Rashmee Kumar, editor copy

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