The Birmingham chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America held a vigil on Sunday in honor of Cameron Thompson, an 18-year-old Black transgender woman who was found dead with gunshot wounds on Dec. 16. The vigil took place at the private residence of Thompson’s mother, Nikki Thompson.
Thompson’s mother and uncle James Matthews both recited poems dedicated to Thompson before everyone shared a moment of silence together.
“We want Cameron to be remembered as someone who made everyone laugh,” Matthews said. “We grew up together, and I watched her become a woman and go through her transition. It was definitely an unfortunate thing that happened, and we just hope that justice is served.”
Madeleine Lelievre, a member of the Queer Socialist Section of Birmingham DSA, said that a member had reached out to family and began organizing the event to showcase their solidarity.
“Trans people exist in Alabama, in this community, and we’re victims of violence at a very high rate,” Lelievre said.
The Human Rights Campaign, a nonprofit that advocates for LGBTQ+ rights, estimated that at least 32 trans and gender nonconforming people were killed in the United States in 2024. Of those 32, over half were Black transgender women. Andrew Flores, an assistant professor at American University and coauthor of “Hate crimes against LGBT people: National Crime Victimization Survey, 2017-2019,” found that “LGBT-identifying individuals were nine times more likely to be a victim of a violent hate crime than cisgender and straight people.”
According to CBS 42, the Tuscaloosa Violent Crimes Unit reported that it has arrested a suspect, though no information has been released because the suspect is a minor. Captain Jack Kennedy of the TVCU told CBS 42 that the shooting was likely related to comments Thompson posted on social media about the suspect’s sexuality.
The state of Alabama hate crime statute only concerns crimes motivated by the victim’s “race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, or physical or mental disability.” Federal hate crime law, however, includes offenses against a person because of their “gender, sexual orientation, [or] gender identity.”
The victim’s aunt started a GoFundMe page to help pay for Thompson’s funeral. Supporters have raised over $10,400.
“Cameron was this kind of role model, at such a young age. Cameron, as confident as she was, inspired me to be a little bit more confident and fearless — to live life unapologetically and not care what anyone has to say,” Matthews said.
