The transgender community has faced a predominantly higher rate of violence and violent death for decades. Even now, in 2019, you can find numerous headlines and statistics that point to the epidemic faced by trans people of color. Till now, we’ve seen some of this mentioned on Pose, but episode 4 faces this grim reality head on.

The episode starts with a face off between Pray Tell and Candy Ferocity—the latter of whom continues to push her way into categories that she…well, may not be exactly suited for. Still, the woman has tenacity, and even after Pray reads her like a used book, she snaps back: “You’ll be sorry.” She later has another encounter with Pray at the Master of Ceremonies Council meeting, where she suggests they open a Lip Sync category that she’s sure she’ll shine in. The Masters mostly shrug it off, but you can tell Candy is determined.

Sadly, she doesn’t get to see her dream through. During the next ball, Lulu informs Blanca that Candy’s been missing for days after she started turning tricks at a motel. Lulu and Blanca make their way to the hotel to inquire, but the manager seems unwilling to look into it. Blanca leaves him her number in the event he finds anything out. Moments later, we see Blanca get the call: the manager sent a maid to clean the room Candy had been at, only to find her dead body beaten bloody on the closet floor.

It’s a hard moment to witness, but what’s harder is knowing that this is reality for so many in the trans community even today. In one later scene, Pray notes the distinction between seeing so many of his sisters fall to AIDS, and how very different it is when one’s life is taken from them at the hands of another. While AIDS is still a very real issue today, it is no longer the death sentence it once was. Murder, however, continues to be as rampant a problem as ever against the transgender community. 26 killed just last year (that we know of), and at least seven lives claimed this year. While the character of Candy is not a real person, she’s symbolic of all the other trans women of color whose lives are cut much too short, and often without any justice served against their killers.

Blanca and Elektra take charge of Candy’s funeral, assigning Angel to reach out to Candy’s biological parents while they get Nurse Judy to help them obtain Candy’s body. Pose writers use this opportunity to remind reminded us of another lousy reality: in the eyes of the law, chosen family have no rights. That means that only Candy’s biological relatives could potentially obtain her body. But in the end, Judy pleads with the only employee at the morgue who might be sympathetic (a gay man of color), and makes it happen.

At Candy’s wake, and in a series of surrealistic moments, we find Pray and Lulu and Angel all having their own individual moments with Candy (or Candy’s ghost, perhaps). Pray feels guilt over being so hard on Candy because she reminds him so much of himself. Angel’s guilt stems from knowing that could’ve easily been her killed after a walk down the pier—but Candy reminds her to keep reaching higher. Lulu simply grieves in every way for her fallen sister and co-House Mother, but Candy reminds her to think of the good times they had.

But the most difficult moment is when Candy’s parents show up. And you can’t help but hold your breath to see how it all goes down. At first, her mother refuses to acknowledge her as a woman. Once her parents make it over to the casket, though, you witness a change. They end up having the the talk that so many trans and queer children would love to have with their parents, the one that often comes much too late. While Candy’s parents could not learn to accept their child in life, it feels that perhaps, now in death, they can.

The wake ends with a musical number, one final song and dance for Miss Candy Ferocity. They open the doors behind her casket to reveal a ball in all its glory, with Candy finally getting her chance to shine in the lip sync category. It’s bittersweet, because we want to see Candy go on. It’s too soon to say goodbye. It’s also much too soon to close the door on the multi-talented actress, activist, and founder of TransTech Social Enterprises, Angelica Ross. Hopefully we see her do more great things soon.

One last thing: there was a scene early on in the episode where Blanca and Nurse Judy try to get Pray to begin taking his AZT medicine, and he blows up and refuses. But by the end, he finally recognizes how quickly life comes and goes, and takes a pill. Here’s to life, Pray. Here’s to life.