I'm taking Anja's slot today while she grieves the loss of a beloved animal companion.

Twenty-six year-old Derricka Banner became the 20th transgender person murdered this year when she was shot to death in her car early Tuesday morning in Charlotte, NC, as rain and wind from Irma were lashing the city. Montavious Sanchez Berry, 18, was arrested later on Tuesday and charged with the murder.

Banner was originally from New York, but has recently been a resident on Lenoir, NC. Sanchez is a Charlotte resident.

From North Carolina:

During an unscheduled discussion of Confederate statues and memorials at the commissioners meeting Monday, several commissioners stood firm in opposition of the removal of statues in communities across the country.

Sherrell Faulkner was assaulted last November 30, found near a dumpster in one of Charlotte, NC's gay-friendly neighborhoods. She died May 16 from the injuries she sustained in the attack. She was 46 years-old.

There is a bill in the NC House (HB 562) intended to target transgender people. It doesn't say so on up front, but the bill increases the penalty for second-degree trespass from 20 days maximum to 120 days maximum if the offense occurs "in a multi-occupancy bathroom, shower or changing facility."

So is everyone safe now?

Overhills High School in Spring Lake, NC has elected a transgender student as homecoming queen. Selena Milian, an 18-year-old Native American, won the race on October 21.

Her win comes as North Carolina faces increasing pressure to repeal the transphobic HB2 bill, which makes it illegal for trans people to use the correct bathroom. The state has suffered a number of sporting and cultural boycotts, costing around $395 million.

To tell the truth, the legal stuff is not in my wheelhouse, but that seems to be where I've had to hang out the last few days. Tuesday it was DOJ to appeal injunction and yesterday it was Federal judges issue conflicting rulings. Today we travel to Virginia for the challenge of North Carolina's HB2.