Just lately, I’ve been sitting in collective grief alongside my trans neighborhood. Over the previous few weeks, we’ve been grappling with a devastating incident that occurred on February 7, 2024. Nex Benedict, together with their trans good friend, discovered themselves cornered in a highschool rest room by three college students. Enduring each verbal slurs and bodily assaults, Nex suffered extreme head trauma after being repeatedly slammed into the ground. Regardless of sustaining accidents, they had been merely escorted to the workplace with none medical help. Shockingly, as an alternative of the perpetrators dealing with penalties, Nex was the one suspended and despatched residence, uncared for by the varsity. Then, tragically, Nex handed away the next day, with head trauma suspected as the first trigger.
Nex Benedict, a 16-year-old Indigenous nonbinary particular person who was a member of the Choctaw Nation, was a vibrant soul who loved cooking, artwork, video video games, and doting on their cat. Nevertheless, their adolescence was marred by fixed advocacy for their very own rights and people of others, as adults constantly failed to supply satisfactory help.
The lack of Nex has plunged each the queer and Indigenous communities into mourning.
One other Two-Spirit particular person has fallen sufferer to the violence perpetuated by colonizers, amplifying the sorrow inside Indigenous circles. For the trans neighborhood, already reeling from quite a few losses in recent times, Nex’s premature demise is especially poignant because of the blatant lack of intervention. Nex’s story resonates deeply with us; their absence serves as a stark reminder of the systemic failures that endanger our existence.
This tragic incident transcends mere bullying—it illustrates a disturbingly vast acceptance of behaviors rooted in systemic discrimination.
Regardless of relentless efforts by the trans neighborhood to focus on the dehumanizing impression of discriminatory legal guidelines and nationwide conversations, society continues to propagate an setting the place violence towards us is normalized. It’s a grim irony that Nex met their premature demise within the very house the place the assault on trans rights started: the lavatory.
Months earlier, a instructor at Nex’s college confronted termination after showing in an 2SLGBTQIA+-affirming TikTok after which being criticized on Libs of TikTok, a platform recognized for its conservative bias. Nex, deeply affected by this injustice, lamented the lack of a supportive determine. Whereas it might be tempting to attribute such incidents to partisan politics, the reality is way extra sobering.
This isn’t merely a state-specific problem—it’s a nationwide epidemic.
Silence within the face of injustice perpetuates the issue. If the plight of trans people solely turns into obvious after tragedies like Nex’s, then systemic change stays elusive. This previous week, college students at Nex’s highschool walked out in protest of the continued bullying that has been occurring. Why can we, as educators, regularly pressure college students to be activists? Why are college students compelled to talk up for their very own security?
Educators should acknowledge that our establishments weren’t designed to be secure havens for queer or Indigenous college students; they had been conceived inside a framework that prioritizes the consolation of white, cisgender males. Efforts to reform such programs face resistance, however the urgency of the duty calls for collective motion from all educators.
Think about this a name to motion.
Should you declare allyship with the trans neighborhood, silence is now not an choice. It’s time to maneuver past passive expressions of solidarity and take tangible steps towards advocacy. Attend college board conferences, incorporate inclusive teachings into your curriculum, and advocate for the rights of queer college students as fervently as they advocate for their very own survival.
The trans neighborhood has lengthy been on the forefront of this battle, sacrificing private consolation within the relentless pursuit of equality. Anti-trans laws permeates each nook of the nation, threatening the very existence of trans people. Now greater than ever, we’d like allies to face with us in solidarity, amplifying our voices in each college, district, and state.
Take motion:
- Attain out to your native 2SLGTBQIA+ middle. Join, ask how one can help, and study what points are dealing with your neighborhood members.
- Name the Owasso, Oklahoma, college district and demand the removing of the superintendent.
- Advocate for the queer neighborhood at native, state, and federal ranges.
- Help Indigenous initiatives that elevate consciousness about Lacking and Murdered Ladies and Two-Spirit individuals. Try Native Hope to study extra and how one can supply help.
- Make the most of sources like Studying for Justice for instructional supplies.
- Discover Studying for Justice’s Finest Practices for Serving LGBTQ College students for additional insights.
Let Nex’s story be a catalyst to encourage change. Collectively, we will create a future the place each particular person is valued, revered, and guarded in our faculties and communities, no matter their gender identification or expression.
