Early this month, Arizona police responded to an emergency call about a suspected suicide attempt. When the officers entered the home, they found a distressed individual in a darkened room with a knife. In what the police have described as an act of self-defense, at least one shot was fired and the individual, who was later identified as transgender internet star, Kayden Clarke, was officially pronounced dead.
Public attention to this tragedy has been fueled not only over the questionable actions of the officers, but also over the police department’s repeatedly referring to the shooting victim’s “dead name”, the name used before transitioning.