The death of transgender teen Leelah Alcorn should be a wake up call for Christians-Interfaith post

[hrmjustin]

Posted in Interfaith

Eliel Cruz

A few days ago, Leelah Alcorn, a transgender girl from Ohio, stepped in front of a truck on the interstate and took her life. She was exhausted. She was tired of having to defend her identity as a transgender teenager. She lacked the support system needed to flourish. Feeling trapped she resorted to ending her pain.

In her suicide note, Leelah cited her Christian parents and Christian counseling as a trigger to her suffering:

“When I was 14, I learned what transgender meant and cried of happiness. After 10 years of confusion I finally understood who I was. I immediately told my mom, and she reacted extremely negatively, telling me that it was a phase, that I would never truly be a girl, that God doesn’t make mistakes, that I am wrong. If you are reading this, parents, please don’t tell this to your kids. Even if you are Christian or are against transgender people don’t ever say that to someone, especially your kid. That won’t do anything but make them hate them self. That’s exactly what it did to me.”

- See more at: http://elielcruz.religionnews.com/2015/01/02/death-transgender-teen-leelah-alcorn-wake-call-christians/#sthash.K2R2l3Gc.dpuf

[goldent]

1. Sad story.

I think we all see parents who are very loving of their children but on some issues take a "tough love" approach that as outsiders we see as wrong. As a parent, in retrospect, I have done the same. We can all use a wake-up call.

I often think of the song in Hair called "Easy to be hard" that can apply to Christians and non-Christians equally well:

How can people be so heartless?
How can people be so cruel?
Easy to be hard
Easy to be cold

And especially people
Who care about strangers
Who care about evil
And social injustice
Do you only
Care about the bleeding crowd?
How about a needing friend?
I need a friend

[el_bryanto]

2. This is a terrible and troubling story

It's pretty awful that this lady was treated this way; I don't know what to say about it beyond that.

Bryant