Jody Suzanne Ford was a 41-year-old hairdresser and owner of Ms. Sid’s Coiffures in Birmingham, Alabama. Born Sidney McFerrin Ford, she had transitioned and was a visible local figure in the spring of 1977.

On April 4, 1977, Jody was shot and killed in the parking lot of a local motel after an argument with the motel manager, Larry Maddox. Maddox was arrested, tried, claimed self-defense at trial, and a jury convicted him of her murder.

Jody’s death is a stark example of violence directed at transgender people in that era. If anyone knew Jody, her salon, or the motel and can share memories or information about that day, please come forward.