Opinion: An Nonbinary Teen is Dead. Their Home State Is to Blame.

Nex Benedict, a 16-year-old Oklahoma teen, passed away the day following a three on one attack in the Owasso school bathroom. After, Benedict reportedly stated the three girls verbally harassed and had been bullying Nex. Nex retaliated by pouring water on the girls, which prompted them to assault Nex physically. Nex themselves said they got “jumped” per The Oklahoman newspaper. They said this about two hours after the fight while recovering in the hospital and was later discharged. Still, the very next day, Nex’s mother, Sue, called 911 because Nex was having very shallow breathing and other medical issues. Nex would, unfortunately, pass away in the hospital. The preliminary autopsy reported that the death was not caused due to trauma, but it has to wait until the final autopsy comes out to make a conclusive decision, according to CNN.

In the wake of Nex’s death, it begs the question as to why the Oklahoma legislature continues to push forth legislation that dehumanizes and normalizes hatred of an already marginalized community. A concerned citizen asked Oklahoma State Senator Tom Woods why the Oklahoma legislature has an obsession with LGBTQ+ citizens. and they aren’t wrong. Oklahoma leads the nation with 54 pieces of Anti-LGBTQ+ legislation being tracked via the ACLU website, with second place being a tie between Iowa and Tennessee. Senator Woods responded by saying, “We are a Republican state ― supermajority ― in the House and Senate. I represent a constituency that doesn’t want that filth in Oklahoma,” and added further “We are a religious state, and we are going to fight it to keep that filth out of the state of Oklahoma because we are a Christian state ― we are a moral state.” These are shockingly mask-off comments even for an increasingly conservative and anti-LGBTQ+ Republican Party. And despite gaining major backlash from the public and even leadership from within his party, he has doubled down, saying “I stand behind what I believe in. The groups and individuals who push gender reassignment on children in our schools, and anyone else who is trying to normalize behavior that shouldn’t be tolerated, is unacceptable in my mind,” There are no words to describe the level of disappointment & fear that is felt. A child is dead, whether their death was or was not caused by the fight, which we won’t know for sure until the final autopsy is out. This type of rhetoric being entered into the public makes it normal, even with outcry against it, it gives those an excuse to hate and call their hate moral in the name of God. 

The worst thing is Woods is not the only one in the state to share this rhetoric. The Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction, Ryan Walters, said “There’s not multiple genders. There’s two. That’s how God created us,” going on to say he doesn’t believe Trans or Nonbinary people even exist (Per the New York Times) and in response to death specifically he said “You always treat individuals with dignity or respect, because they’re made in God’s image, But that doesn’t change truth” And despite everything Walters went on to also state “I think it’s terrible that we’ve had some radical leftists who decided to run with a political agenda and try to weave a narrative that hasn’t been true,” he added, “You’ve taken a tragedy, and you’ve had some folks try to exploit it for political gain.” The irony of Walters’s comments claims that Leftists have turned this into a political thing when a child is dead and is bullied and beaten due to hate.

Following the death of Nex, 350 leaders in organizations are calling for the removal of Ryan Walter. Organizations leading the front, the Trevor Project and NAACP have called upon legislatures to remove Ryan from his position and immediately begin an investigation in Oklahoma’s Department of Education. In addition to organizations fighting back, so have the students. Students within the 2SLGBTQIA+(Two-Spirit, Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans, Queer, Intersex, Asexual, and additional identities) have begun reporting the violence and discrimination they have faced from peers, teachers, and administrators. Walter’s reply vows “not to back down to the woke mob.” 

The local community of Owasso and the larger 2SLGBTQIA+ community grieve the loss of someone gone far too soon. Owasso High School students walked out and protested in response to what they feel is a school not doing enough to protect its students. Feeling that even when they do report acts of bullying nothing comes of it the school responded by saying that they take bullying very seriously and quote “All reported bullying accusations are investigated by administrators at the school site in which they occur, and are reviewed by the district’s Director of Safety and Security.” Multiple vigils were held across the country to remember Nex and for the community to unite and stay strong in the face of adversity. Many gave speeches about the hate the community has faced and its struggles, but I will leave you with a quote from Nonbinary actor Sara Ramirez from a vigil at the historic Stonewall Inn: “Nex Benedict, I want to say I’m sorry for the ways your peers and your school threw you away. Your life was valuable.”

Thank you for reading

-Jace Porter and Taylor Thornton