Sister of ‘Pose’ star Ryan Jamaal Swain fatally shot in Alabama
Brokenhearted actor says that his sister, Raven, was his ’ride or die’ partner in life
Raven Lynette Swain’s family members described her as having a heart of gold.
She was 24 years old and lived in Birmingham. She was also the sister of Ryan Jamaal Swain who is well-known for his role as Damon Richards-Evangelista on the hit FX TV series, Pose.
READ MORE: Steven Canals talks ‘Pose,’ success and Afro-Latin identity
Raven was found in the driver’s seat of a car yesterday and was pronounced dead on the scene. Evidence in the park and parking lot indicated multiple shots had been fired. The cause of her death has not been determined.
It is being reported that she was a shooting victim.
At least one woman, who lives nearby, reported hearing the shots fired. Dozens of Swain’s family and friends rushed to the scene.
“Right now our detectives are canvassing the area,‘’ Birmingham Sgt. Rod Mauldin said. “We don’t have many details of what took place.”
“We don’t know if this took place somewhere else and her vehicle came to a stop here or if it happened here,‘’ Mauldin said. “We are working hard but we need people to come forward with information.”
Her big brother, Ryan Jamaal Swain, is a star of the FX show, Pose.
The young star took to Instagram to share the news with his fans. His heartbreaking caption read, “The unimaginable happened last night, my heart, little sister, my ride or die, my partner in life took her last breath.
Raven Lynette Swain, my heart is broken. I cannot even imagine life without you and I won’t. At the moment, we are hurting, gathering information, planning next steps, and lifting you up. This is not done. We will have swift justice. ??”
In an interview with The Wrap, Swain said he would like his character to visit his biological family.
“I think I would love to see Damon go back to his hometown, mend that relationship or try to mend, or try to find power from a space he felt so weak.”
Swain said that he could see Damon’s storyline as a way to reach out to queer young adults.
“I think that a lot of queer artists and people that are just on the fringes of American society they feel this… trying to appease and to approval-seek with their families,” Swain said.
Pose was nominated for just one Emmy Award this week. Billy Porter was nominated for Lead Actor in a drama series.
Birmingham police are seeking information into Raven Swain’s death. Anyone with information is asked to call Birmingham homicide detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.
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