A civil rights attorney and incoming Howard University law professor is among the dead after a midair collision between a passenger jet with a military helicopter killed 67 people on Wednesday evening.
Kiah Duggins, 30, was aboard the American Airlines flight, which carried 60 passengers and four crew members, that crashed with a Black Hawk just minutes before scheduled to land at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, relatives and close friends confirmed. The three members of the helicopter crew also died.
“Kiah believed in radical love, unwavering truth, and the fight for a better world. Let’s carry her torch forward,” Family member Aisha Duggins wrote in a fundraiser she created slated to go toward causes and initiatives “dear to her heart, ensuring that her work and passion live on.”
Students, Olympic skaters, families and more. A tribute to lives lost in the DC plane crash
Former Sedgwick County Commissioner Lacey Cruse also confirmed Duggins’ death in a Facebook post and called her a “brave and beautiful soul.”
Prior to her death, Duggins was “set to begin a new chapter as a professor at Howard University in the fall,” the university posted on social media.
She dedicated her career to fighting against “unconstitutional policing and unjust money bail practices in Tennessee, Texas and Washington, D.C.,” the post reads.
USA TODAY has reached out to Duggins’ family.
Kiah Duggins worked as civil rights attorney for non-profit
Duggins graduated from Harvard University and was a civil rights attorney with the non-profit Civil Rights Corps.
According to its website, the organization “litigate[s] on behalf of movements challenging unconstitutional policing” and is dedicated to challenging systemic injustice in the United States’ legal system.
USA TODAY has reached out to the Civil Rights Corps.
Where was Attorney Kiah Duggins from?
A Wichita native, Duggins attended Wichita Public Schools, the district confirmed to USA TODAY on Friday, and graduated from Wichita High School East.
A graduate of the Class of 2013, she was an International Baccalaureate Diploma graduate, a member of the Dance Team, Model UN Club, Spanish and National Honor Societies, and Student Government, Wichita High School East Principal Sara Richardson told USA TODAY Friday.
“She was also a Homecoming Queen candidate, a testament to the admiration and respect she earned from her peers,” Richardson said. “Her determination to make a difference, especially in the lives of young people of color, was evident in everything she did. She led with kindness, purpose, and a commitment to lifting others up, inspiring those around her to strive for excellence and equity.
“While we grieve this tremendous loss, we also honor the incredible legacy Kiah leaves behind. Her impact on our school, community, and beyond will not be forgotten.”
