Remembrance of Leelah Alcorn

[CrissyMarie]

We lost a young sister over the holidays, a teen girl who was trans, by the name of Leelah Alcorn who could not bare the thought of living as a boy and who could not receive except acceptance from her parents for who she was.  May she rest in peace and God take her into his heavenly kingdom, so that she may become the prettiest of angels.  My heart cries for her and I pray she will never be forgotten.  I hope that her death will not have been in vain and that people will begin to open their minds and hearts to all who are hurting inside to be who they truly feel they are.  I hope that we can be as strong as she was and continue pushing for trans awareness and gender equality.  Please feel free to express your prayers and thoughts, in remembrance of our precious teen sister Leelah Alcorn.  V.V;

[stephaniec]

peace

[Leila]

RIP Leelah

[kellizgirl]

Leelah I pray you find the love and acceptance in Heaven you were denied here on earth!

[Foxglove]

This story makes me shudder.  I look back on my own teen years, and I know full well that if my parents had discovered that I was trans, I would have ended up just like Leelah.  You have the choice of the closet or death.  You would think that that choice would no longer be forced upon trans teenagers these days, but sadly, human progress is often very, very slow.

I don't know what we can do now but remember her and keep campaigning for the rights she was denied so that young trans people are no longer faced with the cruel choice she was.

RIP, Leelah.

[ImagineKate]

Leelah's suicide clearly makes the case against so-called "conversion therapy." But it also shows that we have to listen to our children and hear their cries for help and not force our vision of life down their throats.

Today I had the talk with my kids. I explained to them what transgender meant and what daddy is doing. They seemed to smile a bit but they all gave me a hug. My son I'm watching because he has shown interest in some feminine things but I'm not pushing him either way. If he is cis, that's great. If he's trans, then I'll help him, even over my wife's protests because she thinks I'm "influencing" him. Doesn't work that way, hon...

[mellynn88]

Such a sad story.  Hopefully her story will have an impact on parents of trans youth and show what not accepting them can lead to.   

RIP Leelah.

[alexbb]

This story made me so angry. It was a major factor in me deciding to go for it. She wrote so eloquently at an age when, to my eternal shame, I was snickering at transgendered people on TV or in the street with my friends. She deserved better, especially to be loved and supported by her poor parents. I understand only too well her feelings of hopelessness. I intend to honour her by living and being happy. I wont forget her.

Bon Iver Love More

[Merrydownjade]

RIP The way her parents are treating her memory is awful, makes me so angry to know people could treat their child like this.