Camila Maria Concepción, a 28-year-old trans writer, actor, and activist, who wrote on various television shows, including Netflix’s series Gentefied and Daybreak, died by suicide last week, her representative confirmed to Variety. “We are heartbroken by the loss of Camila Concepción,” the Gentefied team said in a statement. “She was hired as our writers’ assistant on Gentefied, but quickly made her way into our hearts as a sister, writer and friend. She co-wrote episode 109 ‘Protest Tacos,’ and we were so blown away by her amazing talent and unique voice. She was definitely a force to be reckoned with and we are deeply saddened by the loss of one of our brightest stars.”
Here are five things you should know about Camila and the positive impact she made to those around her.
1.) She was an advocate for trans liberation. As a trans Latina, the cause was dear to her heart, and she spoke about trans issues at the 2018 United States of Women Summit alongside other notable people such as Micah Bazant, poet Audrey Kuo, and political commentator Sally Kohn. She also aimed to help trans people be represented in a better way by partnering with artist Favianna Rodriguez and Transparent‘s Jill Solloway to help with the 5050by2020 initiative which was started to “demand the leadership of those who have been marginalized in order to build new models of power, access, and representation in television and film.”
2.) She studied at Yale University. She majored in English literature at the prestigious Connecticut school before pursuing her successful writing career in the entertainment industry.
3.) In addition to the Gentefied team, Netflix and other people she touched spoke out after her shocking death. Netflix described her as a “talented writer with a passion for storytelling, lifting up underrepresented voices, and fighting for representation in front of and behind the camera.”
“We are deeply saddened to learn of the tragic passing of Camila Concepción,” the Netflix statement continued. “She made bold and critical contributions to our industry, most recently through her incredible writing on Gentefied, and her legacy will live on through her work. Our thoughts are with her family and friends in this time of loss.”
UTA, who she was represented by, also said that “she was a fierce advocate for all she believed in and was taken away from us way too soon. Camila was a one of a kind soul and we were so lucky to have worked with her. She had many stories left to tell and we will continue to work on her behalf to ensure that those stories are shared.”
Gentefied co-creators Marvin Lemus and Linda Yvette Chavez also took to social media to express their sadness at losing Camila by posting pictures of her along with long captions.
4.) Her last Instagram post signifies the legacy she left behind. In the post, which was posted on Nov. 11, 2019, Camila showed off a black banner that read her name with “writer” underneath it in white letters. The banner looked like it may have come from the back of a director’s chair.
5.) She raised trans rights awareness on social media. In various pics, videos, and memes, the advocate made her beliefs known. One pic showed a flag that read, “TRANS PEOPLE DESERVE TO LIVE” on it while another post showed a quote from trans woman Ciara McElveen, who was murdered in 2017, that read, “Trans women don’t want any special privileges. We should have the right to live our lives open and free and not be taunted and traumatized by the general public if they don’t approve.”
We’re sending comfort and healing wishes to all those affected by Camila’s passing.