Edward M. PioRoda/CNN

Pete Buttigieg heralded protesters who interrupted his entrance to the CNN Equality Town Hall by calling for greater attention to the violence against transgender women of color.

It was hard to hear exactly what the protesters were shouting, but at least one said. “People are dying,” before they were escorted out. The South Bend, Indiana, mayor opened his remarks by saying that he shared the concerns of protesters, who contended that the press has not paid enough attention to the uptick in violence against black transgender women.

“I do want to acknowledge what these demonstrators were speaking about, which is the epidemic of violence against black trans women in this country right now,” Buttigieg said. “And I believe or would like to believe that everybody here is committed to ending that epidemic, and that does include lifting up its visibility and speaking to it.”

Buttigieg added that the protest was a reminder of how much diversity there is within the LGBTQ community.

“I’m very mindful of the fact that my experience as a gay man—as a white gay man—there are dimensions of what it’s like to be a black gay woman that I also do not understand. But I also think the diversity within the LGBTQ-plus community is part of what we have to offer right now.”

The statistics about the level of violence against black transgender women are difficult to measure, but the Human Rights Campaign has closely tracked the incidents and you can read more about recent victims of deadly violence at their website.

In 2018, the Human Rights Campaign tracked the deaths of at least 26 people; so far this year they say at least 19 transgender people have either been fatally shot or killed.

WATCH HERE: