NCAVP mourns the death of Rodriguez Montez Burks, a Black gay man who was killed by a fellow inmate in his cell at the Alger County Correctional Facility on July 20. According to media reports, prior to his death, prison staff ignored both Burks’s and his cellmate’s requests to be separated, the issue being Burks’s sexual identity.
We mourn the death of Rodriguez Montez Burks, and send love and care to his friends and loved ones. Furthermore, we condemn the systemic violence that led up to his death from fatal, homophobic hate violence, which was only exacerbated by the way the prison system treats LGBTQ inmates. LGBTQ prisoners are more likely to experience mistreatment, harsh punishment, and sexual victimization while incarcerated, and Burks’s death came as a direct consequence of prison staff’s refusal to protect him.
LGBTQ organizations across the country, such as NCAVP member program Trans Pride Initiative in Dallas, Texas and Black and Pink, are working to end violence in the prison system. Learn more and get involved and ensure that all LGBTQ people can live free from violence.
In memory of Rodriguez Montez Burks.