Alicia Canary
A square, beige-brown sheet of paper made from goldenrod and corn has the words “Aidelen Evans” and “March 2021” written on it. Around the sides of the paper are lighter gray-beige paper remnants. This work is part of a larger collection honoring the lives of over 45 trans and gender-nonconforming Americans who were murdered in the past year.

This piece, though large, is fairly simple in order to call attention to the name and date written on it: "Aidelen Evans, March 2021". In doing so, Canary has helped immortalize those whose lives were so brutally torn from them. For more information, please see the links below

America's War on Black Trans Women

Transgender Rights

15 Trans Rights Organizations to Donate to Right Now

24 LGBTQ+ Organizations You Can Support Right Now

Artist's Statement:

"This month's submissions are part of a larger project acknowledging, remembering, and mourning the 45+ transgender, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming Americans who have been murdered so far this year. (We are aware of 45+; the true number is likely higher.) The majority of these victims are black trans women who lived at the intersection of racism, poverty, and transphobia.

The list of names used in the mail art exchange is below. Each of you is receiving paper with one of these names written on it. The paper was made this fall with a mix of golden rod and corn; some pieces have been cast onto plastic netting.

In Remembrance:

Tyianna "Davarea" Alexander, 28, January 6, Chicago

Samuel Edmund Damián Valentin, January 9, Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico

Bianca "Muffin" Bankz, 30, January 17, Atlanta

Dominique Jackson, 30, January 25, Jackson, Miss.

Fifty Bands, 21, January 28, Baton Rouge, La.

Alexus Braxton, February 4, Miami

Chyna Carrillo, 24, February 18, New Wilmington Borough, Pa.

Jeffery "JJ" Bright, 16, February 22, Ambridge, Pa.

Jasmine Canady, 22, February 22, Ambridge Pa.

Jenna Franks,  34, February 24, Jacksonville, N.C.

Aidelen Evans, 24, March, Port Arthur, Texas

Diamond Kyree Sanders, 23, March 3, Cincinnati

Rayanna Pardo, 26, March 17, Los Angeles

Jaida Peterson, 29, April 4, Charlotte, N.C.

Dominique Lucious, 26, April 8, Springfield, Mo.

Remy Fennell, 28, April 15, Charlotte, N.C.

Tiara Banks, 24, April 21, Chicago

Jahaira DeAlto Balenciaga, 42, April 23, Boston

Natalia Smüt, 24, April 23, Milpitas, Calif.

Iris Santos, 22, April 23, Houston

Tiffany Thomas, 38, April 24, Dallas

 

This partial list was taken from an October 2021 article in The Advocate

https://www.advocate.com/transgender/2021/10/20/all-trans-people-killed-murdered-violence-2021-record-statistics "