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35-year-old Black trans woman Rasheeda Williams was shot and killed in Atlanta on Tuesday, April 18, 2023. Rasheeda was a performance artist known as Koko Da Doll and Hollywood Koko
Police reports indicate a person was found dead near a shopping plaza in southwest Atlanta. They confirmed a person was found shot to death at the intersection of Martin Luther King Jr. Dr. SW and Hamilton E. Holmes NW around 10:45 PM. There has been no official identification by authorities, but friends and family have confirmed Rasheeda was the victim.
Earlier this year, Rasheeda was recently featured in the award-winning Sundance Film Festival documentary “Kokomo City.” The film portrayed the lives of four African American transgender sex workers between New York City and Atlanta. She was also a rapper, releasing her first single “ Trick” in 2020 followed by 2022’s “ Bulletproof.”
Rasheeda is the tenth trans or gender nonconforming person whose violent death has been reported in 2023. She is the sixth Black trans woman, the ninth trans woman, the eighth trans woman of color, the ninth trans person of color, and at age 35, the second oldest of the 2023 victims to date. As of today, a trans person has been killed in the US every 11 days. Reported is an important distinction as we know there are more who go unacknowledged.
