Vigil for Ruby Rodriguez, murdered trans woman

Tina D'Elia, Hate Violence Survivor Program Director
(415) 777-5500 ext. 304

Alexandra Byerly, EL-LA
Program Coordinator
(415) 864-7278

Community Mourns Murder of Latina Transgender Woman
Requests Attendance at Vigil to Demand Change

San Francisco, California (March 22, 2007) - A

Nicaraguan transgender woman, Ruby Rodriguez, 24 years old, was murdered on
Friday, March 16, 2007. Her body was found on the corner of Cesar Chavez and
Indiana Streets in the Mission District of San Francisco. The murder
is currently
under investigation by the San Francisco Police Department. Community United
Against Violence (CUAV), EL-LA, San Francisco LGBT Community Center,
TRANS Project,
allies, and community members will hold a community vigil in her honor
on Friday,
March 23, 2007 at 6:00PM, on the corner of 24th Street and Mission
Street in the
Mission District.

Organizers request that the community bring a white candle to the vigil.
There will also be an additional altar set up on Cesar Chavez and Indiana
Street, and community members are encouraged to bring flowers,
photographs, cards and good wishes to this site. Let us not forget Ruby.
She was an exceptional woman who was intent on improving her life. Ruby
participated in various support groups and language classes, and idolized
Chicana singer Selena.

This murder comes at the heels of at least two other violent deaths of
transgender
women of color in the San Francisco Bay Area over the past six months.
Transgender people,
particularly low-income transgender women of color, are
disproportionately poor, homeless,
criminalized and imprisoned as a result of systemic discrimination in our
daily attempts to access safe housing, healthcare, employment, and education.

Unfortunately, Ruby's murder is not an exception, but an everyday fear for many
transgender people who are targeted and brutalized by institutions and society
at large. Our communities mourn Ruby's death and ask for a renewed
commitment to
real safety for transgender communities. It is vital that the Mayor's
Office, the
San Francisco Police Department, and the District Attorney's Office
work to end the
cycles of criminalization, poverty, and violence in transgender communities and
communities of color.

Please direct any questions about the vigil to Tina D'Elia or Alexandra Byerly.
If anyone has any information regarding Ruby's murder, please contact Inspector
Karen Lynch at (415) 553-1388 or Inspector Tom Cleary at (415) 553-9569
of the SFPD Homicide Unit.

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Community United Against Violence works to end violence against and within the
LGBTQQ communities, providing free and confidential counseling,
advocacy, and education
in English and Spanish. CUAV's crisis line is (415) 333-4357