Friends and relatives are offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to the safe return of Taylor Casey, 42, a Black transgender activist from Chicago who went missing in the Bahamas in June.
Casey was last seen on the evening of June 19 at the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat on Paradise Island in the Bahamas. Retreat employees reported her missing the next day, and the Royal Bahamas Police Force issued a missing person alert June 21.
The reward was made possible by a donor who wishes to remain anonymous, according to a press release.
She had practiced yoga for 15 years and had gone to the island for a two-day retreat. She told her family she was looking forward to returning home to Chicago.
The family has also retained attorney John Q. Kelly and his team to assist in getting answers regarding Casey’s disappearance. The family is not aware of any new leads in the Bahamas police investigation.
The family is urging the FBI to get involved and is pushing for action from Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and U.S. Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth of Illinois. Duckworth has recently spoken with the family.
“Thanks to everyone who donated to our online fundraiser,” Colette Seymore, Casey’s mother, said in the release. “It is helping with legal fees and travel costs. We never expected to be in this position and don’t have the resources to do this alone. Again, we thank you!”
A #BringTaylorHome campaign is simultaneously being launched on social media, and volunteers are attempting to enlist celebrities and influencers to help spread the word — in part to put pressure on authorities in the Bahamas and the U.S., and also to call attention to the funds needed to help in this search. They are seeking to raise $100,000 to cover legal costs and travel fees. “We are asking for people in a position of influence to talk about Taylor and help us find her,” Seymore said.
“I believe Taylor is in danger because she was eager to share her yoga retreat experience with others upon her return,” Seymore said an earlier release. “Taylor would never disappear like this.”
“Each day that passes, I’m reminded that a world with Taylor is a better world for everyone,” her friend Sam Hsieh said in the latest release. “This is an active ongoing search to find Taylor and bring her home. That is what we hope comes out of this situation, and we invite any intentional support or effort in that direction.”
