Leelah Alcorn (November 15, 1997 – December 28, 2014) was a Transgender teen girl from Ohio who had the misfortune of having fanatical fundamentalist christian parents. She came out to them as Transgender, but soon after they made their intent clear: they were going to subject her to the abuse and torture of “reparative therapy”. In despair, Leelah wrote a suicide note, and later walked into the path of a tractor trailer, killed instantly.
In the days before her death, her “parents” took her out of school, deleted her facebook account, took away her cell phone and all means of communicating with her friends. Her friends loved and accepted Leelah for who she was.
I don’t give a damn that the “official cause of death” was suicide. Leelah’s parents hate and religion murdered her.
More below the fold.
Leelah’s suicide note read:
The only way I will rest in peace is if one day transgender people aren’t treated the way I was, they’re treated like humans, with valid feelings and human rights. Gender needs to be taught about in schools, the earlier the better. My death needs to mean something. My death need to be counted in the number of transgender people who commit suicide this year. I want someone to look at that number and say “that’s fucked up” and fix it. Fix society. Please.
Goodbye,
(Leelah)
JoshAlcorn
Reportedly, the “parents” found the suicide note and made no attempt to find Leelah or save her life. All they cared about was themselves. They inflicted a final indignity on Leelah at her funeral, refusing to recognize her gender and deadnaming her both at the funeral and her grave.
I hope her death eats at them for the rest of their miserable lives.
Here are statistics from the Human Rights Campaign:
New Study Reveals Shocking Rates of Attempted Suicide Among Trans Adolescents
Harrowing statistics from a study recently published by the American Academy of Pediatrics revealed alarming levels of attempted suicide among transgender youth — with the highest rates among transgender boys and non-binary youth. The findings emphasize the urgency of building welcoming and safe communities for LGBTQ young people, particularly for transgender youth.
More than half of transgender male teens who participated in the survey reported attempting suicide in their lifetime, while 29.9 percent of transgender female teens said they attempted suicide. Among non-binary youth, 41.8 percent of respondents stated that they had attempted suicide at some point in their lives.
Many transgender young people experience family rejection, bullying and harassment, or feel unsafe for simply being who they are – all of which can be added risk factors for suicide. Earlier this year, HRC released its 2018 LGBTQ Youth Report, which detailed similarly alarming experiences — but also significant perseverance among LGBTQ young people in the face of daunting challenges.
The text in the artwork:
“The truck didn’t kill me, YOU DID.”
Finally, a piece of fanart that I really enjoy.
That last piece of art is wonderful, gorgeous, and gorgeously wonderful.
For some reason, you’re not being automatically approved like other people.
I remember reading about this when it happened, and it’s just tragic and heartbreaking. How can someone claim to love someone else, but refuse to let them be who they are?
I’ve still got a lot to learn on a lot of these issues, and in my past/youth, was probably at least a bit heterosexist, if not slightly homophobic, but I’ve never understood supposed “parents” who would rather have a dead kid then an out bi or gay kid, or a trans kid. it’s just wrong on such a fundamental level
I remember this story and feeling such sadness for the girl. My parents were dysfunctional, but not like that. To deny your child the basic right to be who they are, even in death is cruel.
I have much to learn about trans issues, but religious bigots seem a particularly nasty bunch who are resistant to reason and empathy.