"Kansas City Black Trans Icon" and "Very Sweet Soul" Kita Bee Killed in a Hit-and-Run
Kita Bee, a Black transgender woman, was killed on May 3 in a hit-and-run in Kansas City. She was 46 years old.
According to the Kansas City Star, at about 9:20 that night, officers responded to reports of a crash involving a pedestrian in East Kansas City’s Independence Plaza neighborhood. Police said that a silver Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck struck Bee and fled the scene, although the driver of the truck later returned to the scene of the crash. At the time of writing, the driver has not been located. Captain Jacob Becchina, a spokesperson for the Kansas City Police Department (KCPD), told the outlet that they believe a second vehicle may have also struck Bee and fled the scene.
In an article updated on May 7, the Star reported that the KCPD had not officially identified Bee as the person killed in the hit and the run — her friends and family were the ones who confirmed her identity — and that the police department misgendered Bee in initial communications from the scene of her death. This instance of misgendering comes just five months after another Black trans woman, Amber Minor, was misgendered by police — and subsequently, several local publications — after she was shot and killed in the nearby town of Raytown, Missouri.
Speaking. KCPD currently classifies her death as a pedestrian fatality hit-and-run accident, according to the Star, but speaking to the local news outlet KSHB 41, some of Bee’s friends said that they believe the hit-and-run may have been intentional.
In a May 5 Instagram post, the organization KC Transformations, which works to build leadership among Midwestern trans communities, described Bee as a “KC Black Trans icon.”
“Kita Bee was one of our original Kansas City trans women of color who played a significant role in mentoring many of our sisters and was an icon in the community,” the post continued.
Kris Wade, the executive director of the Justice Project, a local peer support nonprofit supporting women who have experienced homelessness and abuse, told the Star that she had known Bee for 18 years and described her as a “very sweet soul.”
“She was in her full authentic persona all the time, and that takes guts when you’re a trans person,” Wade said. “Especially a trans woman of color.”
Minor was described by loved ones as a warrior.
Wade added that Bee had previously survived other major injuries, including another hit-and-run incident earlier this year. She had been close with her sister, Raynisha, and her mother, who passed away earlier this year.
“Kita was very bold in her personality,” Raynisha, told KC Transformations. “Her idol was Mary J. Blige, and she was an all-around entertainer. She loved to sing, dance, perform to make you happy, smile, or laugh.”
According to a May 6 KC Transformations Instagram post, Bee’s family is currently raising funds to support her burial and funeral costs through the CashApp $SheroRay.
Get the best of what’s queer. Sign up for Them’s weekly newsletter here.
Originally Appeared on them.
