Honoring Dominic Dupree, a Black Gender Non-Conforming Person and Passionate Entrepreneur

Dominic Dupree, who was also known as Dominic Palace, was a 25-year-old Black gender non-conforming person from Gary, Indiana who operated companies including Private Protection Division LLC and Hondo IV Lawncare and Snow Removal LLC. Tragically, Dominic was fatally shot in Chicago on October 13, 2023. Homicide detectives are currently investigating. On social media, several of Dominic’s friends and family members expressed their grief and condolences.

Dominic’s death is at least the 23rd violent killing of a transgender or gender non-conforming person in 2023. We say “at least” because too often these deaths go unreported — or misreported.

Dominic had an entrepreneurial spirit and was passionate about providing services to help others. Dominic was only 25, loved by so many people and surely had so much more to give. We must all work to stop the horrific gun violence that too often takes the lives of Black transgender and gender non-conforming people."

Tori Cooper, Human Rights Campaign Director of Community Engagement for the Transgender Justice Initiative

Dominic was the fourth gender non-conforming person killed
in 2023, and the second gender non-conforming person killed in a month. They are the 17th transgender or gender non-conforming person killed in 2023 with a gun. HRC’s own tracking found that, since 2013, at least 231 transgender and gender non-conforming victims of fatal violence have been killed with a firearm, approximately 70% of all deaths identified to date.

More than 25,000 hate crimes in the U.S. involve a firearm each year, which equates to almost 70 cases, according to a 2022 report from Everytown for Gun Safety in partnership with HRC and The Equality Federation Support Fund, “Remembering and Honoring Pulse: Anti-LGBTQ Bias and Guns Are Taking Lives of Countless LGBTQ People.” The report also notes a marked increase in anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes, especially against transgender people. In 2022, the most recent year for which data is available, the FBI recorded a record-high number of hate crimes related to gender identity, including a 33% jump in hate crimes on the basis of gender identity from the year before.

At the state level, transgender and gender non-conforming people in Illinois are explicitly protected from discrimination in employment, housing, education and public spaces. Illinois does include sexual orientation and gender identity as protected characteristics in its hate crimes law. Though we have recently seen some political gains that support and affirm transgender people, we have also faced unprecedented anti-LGBTQ+ attacks in the states. In June 2023, the Human Rights Campaign declared a National State of Emergency for LGBTQ+ Americans, as a result of the more than 550 anti-LGBTQ+ bills introduced into state houses that year, over 80 of which were signed into law—more than in any other year.

We must demand better from our elected officials and reject harmful anti-transgender legislation at the local, state and federal levels, while also considering every possible way to make ending this violence a reality. It is clear that fatal violence disproportionately affects transgender women of color, especially Black transgender women. The intersections of racism, transphobia, sexism, biphobia and homophobia conspire to deprive them of necessities to live and thrive, so we must all work together to cultivate acceptance, reject hate and end stigma for everyone in the trans and gender non-conforming community.

More resources:

Learn more about the fatal violence cases that HRC is tracking where details are unclear. You may find a list of these cases here.
Watch this PSA campaign elevating stories of trans joy and love.
Join HRC's CountMeIn campaign to take action for transgender and non-binary people.
Read these guidelines and this FAQ for journalists to ensure greater accuracy and respect in reporting.
Learn about how transgender and non-binary people are combating transphobia, stigma and anti-trans violence through our Celebrating Changemakers series.