Black transgender woman Amber Minor killed in Missouri on Christmas Eve

Amber Minor Missouri Transgender Woman Murdered Christmas Eve 2023

facebook @star.white.3110567

Minor was shot to death in Raytown, near Kansas City.

Trudy Ring

Trudy Ring is The Advocate’s senior politics editor and copy chief. She has been a reporter and editor for daily newspapers and LGBTQ+ weeklies/monthlies, trade magazines, and reference books. She is a political junkie who thinks even the wonkiest details are fascinating, and she always loves to see political candidates who are groundbreaking in some way. She enjoys writing about other topics as well, including religion (she’s interested in what people believe and why), literature, theater, and film. Trudy is a proud “old movie weirdo” and loves the Hollywood films of the 1930s and ’40s above all others. Other interests include classic rock music (Bruce Springsteen rules!) and history. Oh, and she was a Jeopardy! contestant back in 1998 and won two games. Not up there with Amy Schneider, but Trudy still takes pride in this achievement.

Read Full Bio

Trudy Ring

January 03 2024 5:14 PM EST

trudestress

Sorry to interrupt...
But we wanted to take a moment to thank you for reading. Your support makes original LGBTQ+ reporting possible. Help us hold Trump accountable.

One-time Monthly

$19.67 $50 Other

$5 $19.67 $50

Amber Minor, a 40-year-old Black transgender woman, was shot to death in Raytown, Mo., the morning of December 24.

Minor, who lived in nearby Kansas City, Mo., was found in a driveway about 8:35 a.m., The Kansas City Starreports. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Much local coverage misgendered and deadnamed Minor. However, Kansas City activists confirmed her trans identity.

“Amber was a resilient Black Trans woman who lived a life full of laughter,” the LGBTQ Commission of Kansas City wrote on X (formerly Twitter). On the same platform, Justice Horn, chair of the commission, described Minor as “a Black Trans woman full of love and life.” The commission is working with Transformations KC and other local trans groups to support the community, the posts said.

— (@)

Raytown police are still investigating the crime. They ask that anyone with information call the TIPS Hotline at (816) 474-8477. Tipsters are allowed to remain anonymous.

Minor is one of more than 30 trans, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming people known to have died by violence in the U.S. in 2023. In any given year, the number is likely much higher than reported, due to deadnaming and misgendering. In the years that activists and media have been tracking these deaths, Black women have usually accounted for a majority of victims.