Family seeks answers after black woman disappears during yoga retreat in Bahamas

A family is searching for answers after a black woman from Chicago disappeared during a yoga retreat in the Bahamas. According to AP, 41-year-old Taylor Casey disappeared on June 19 during the Sivananda Ashram yoga retreat on Paradise Island, Bahamas, which was confirmed by her family in a press release.

On June 21, Bahamas police issued a missing person report and created a poster to raise awareness of the disappearance.

Her mother, Colette Seymore, has reportedly traveled to Paradise Island and Nassau to meet with authorities and get answers about her daughter’s whereabouts.

“We are deeply concerned for Taylor’s safety and well-being,” Seymore said in a press release posted in a Facebook group dedicated to finding Taylor Casey. “We love Taylor and want to bring her home.”https://embeds.go.ione.nyc/protected-iframe/bb139ca9cad35b76aca7a2946d506705

According to her mother, Casey has been practicing yoga for 15 years and traveled to the Sivananda Ashram Yoga Retreat to gain knowledge and experiences to share with her community in Chicago.

“I believe Taylor is in danger because she was so eager to share her yoga retreat experience with others when she returned. Taylor would never disappear like that,” Seymore said in the press release.

The family is asking anyone with information about her whereabouts to come forward as soon as possible. “Every lead is crucial in their efforts to find her,” the press release said.

Casey is described as a light-skinned black woman, approximately 5’10” tall and weighing 143 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.

Taylor Casey’s disappearance draws attention to the disturbing number of black women who disappear each year.

In 2022, more than 97,000 missing black women cases were reported in the United States alone, according to data from the National Crime Information Center. That same year, black women and girls accounted for about 18% of all missing persons cases, despite making up only 7% of the population.

Rosa Page, a registered nurse and director of the Black Femicide Prevention Coalition, told US News that she believes the number of missing black women is much higher than the numbers suggest.

“There are no flyers, often there is no information – not even about the missing women and girls on my site,” she said.

As we have previously reported, missing black women have historically received less media attention than other populations.

“If the number of missing black people is twice the actual population, which is actually the case, there should be twice as many stories. But in reality, the opposite is true,” Kyle Pope, editor-in-chief and publisher of the Columbia Journalism Review, told WTKR. “When someone goes missing, the case is more or less reported, and that is directly related to race.”