Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray

Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray
Born1983/1984
Died (aged 42)
Petersburg, Virginia, US
Other namesSaamel
Mable
OccupationsActivist
Drag performer

Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray (1983/1984 – March 13, 2026) was an American drag performer and activist who was murdered in 2026.

Career

Sanchez-McCray worked as a club promoter and drag queen, competing in drag pageants around the United States.[1] He won the Miss Mayflower EOY pageant in 2015.[1] In 2017, he was the second alternate to Miss North Carolina Mardis Gras.[2] He was active in Virginia and in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he was involved in the Charlotte Black Pride pageant circuit and won the Miss Charlotte FFI-at-Large pageant in 2020.[1]

He worked with the Nationz Pageantry system and also ran a catering company.[3]

In 2023, Sanchez-McCray boycotted Bar at 316, an LGBTQ+ sports bar in Charlotte that was reportedly mistreating Black patrons.[1][4]

Murder

On March 13, 2026, Sanchez-McCray was shot and killed in Petersburg, Virginia.[1] He was forty-two years old at the time of his murder.[1] Police officers responded to the shooting and found his body, with multiple gunshot wounds, inside a house with an unsecured door.[1] He was pronounced dead at the scene and was misgendered as a trans woman in initial news reports.[1] His family later stated he identified as a gay man.[5]

His funeral was scheduled to take place on March 27, 2026, at Johnson Celebration of Life Center in Petersburg, Virginia.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Riedel, Samantha (March 23, 2026). "Black Trans Activist and Drag Performer Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray Killed in Virginia". Them. Retrieved March 23, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray". Our Community Roots. March 3, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2026.
  3. ↑ "The Violent Death of Black Trans Woman Shyyell Diamond Sanchez-McCray First Reported Homicide This Year". PGH Lesbian Correspondents. March 21, 2026. Retrieved March 23, 2026.
  4. ↑ Bricki (March 24, 2026). "Trans Activist Shyyell Sanchez-McCray Killed in VA". TransVitae. Retrieved March 24, 2026.
  5. ↑ Wiggins, Christopher (March 25, 2026). "Gay drag artist killed in Virginia shooting". Advocate.com. Retrieved 2026-03-25.
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