Friends Seek Justice After Transgender Woman’s Murder

Felycya Harris was found dead of a single gunshot wound in an Augusta, Georgia park...the third transgender person murdered in the area within the past year. WAGT's Celeste Springer reports.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (NBC News) — Friends of a transgender woman found murdered in an Augusta, Georgia, park are demanding justice in the wake of her death.

The body of 33-year-old Felycya Harris was found in Augusta’s Meadowbrook Park on Saturday.

“I just want justice to be served for my friend,” Ricola Collier says.

“Everybody’s going to remember Felycya. That laugh. The smile — the smiles. The talks. The arguments. The attitudes. Everybody is going to remember who Felycya Harris is. Nobody would ever forget who that is,” she adds.

Harris was the third transgender murder victim in the area in the past year.

“Typically, the only time people listen to trans people, and trans women specifically, is when we become victims of a homicide. And then it’s already too late,” says Naomi Simmons-Thorne, a trans-rights activist.

“Trans people, trans identities [are] being seen as cultural taboo,” Simmons-Thorne adds. “We become easy targets because you’re hyper-visible.”

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