Death of Leelah Alcorn

Leelah Alcorn

Teenaged, white, transgirl with dark hair wearing a white dress and posing in front of a mirror, taking a photograph of herself using a camera phone.

Leelah Alcorn in 2014
Born Joshua Ryan Alcorn
(1997-11-15)November 15, 1997
Kings Mills, Ohio, US
Died December 28, 2014(2014-12-28) (aged 17)
Lebanon, Ohio, US
Cause of death Suicide by vehicular impact

Leelah Alcorn (November 15, 1997 – December 28, 2014) was an American transgender girl whose suicide attracted international attention. Alcorn had posted a suicide note to her Tumblr blog, writing about societal standards affecting transgender people and expressing the hope that her death would create a dialogue about discrimination, abuse and lack of support for transgender people.

Assigned male at birth, she was given the name Joshua Alcorn and raised in Ohio by a family affiliated with the Churches of Christ movement. At age 14, she came out as transgender to her parents, Carla and Doug Alcorn, who refused to accept her female gender identity. When she was 16, they denied her request to undergo transition treatment, instead sending her to Christian-based conversion therapy with the intention of convincing her to reject her gender identity and accept her gender as assigned at birth. After she revealed her attraction toward males to her classmates, her parents removed her from school and revoked her access to social media. In her suicide note, Alcorn cited loneliness and alienation as key reasons for her decision to end her life and blamed her parents for causing these feelings. She committed suicide by walking out in front of oncoming traffic on the Interstate 71 highway.

Alcorn arranged for her suicide note to be posted online several hours after her death, and it soon attracted international attention across mainstream and social media. LGBT rights activists called attention to the incident as evidence of the problems faced by transgender youth, while vigils were held in her memory in the United States and United Kingdom. Petitions were formed calling for the establishment of "Leelah's Law", a ban on conversion therapy in the U.S., which received a supportive response from U.S. President Barack Obama. Within a year, the city of Cincinnati had criminalised conversion therapy. Alcorn's parents were criticized for misgendering Leelah in comments that they made to the media, while LGBT rights activist Dan Savage blamed them for their child's death and social media users subjected them to online harassment. They defended their refusal to accept their child's identity and their use of conversion therapy by reference to their Christian values.

Life

Assigned male at birth, Alcorn was given the name Joshua Ryan Alcorn.[1][2] She eventually rejected this forename, and in her suicide note signed herself "(Leelah) Josh Alcorn".[3][4] She was one of several children.[5] Describing herself as being raised in a conservative Christian environment,[6][7] she and her family attended the Northeast Church of Christ in Cincinnati, and had been featured in a profile of that church published in a 2011 article in The Christian Chronicle.[8] As of 2014, the family lived in Kings Mills, Ohio.[9]

"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."

— Leelah Alcorn's suicide note, 2014[3]

According to her suicide note, Alcorn had felt "like a girl trapped in a boy's body" since she was four, and came to identify as a transgender girl from the age of fourteen, when she became aware of the term.[3] According to her note, she immediately informed her mother, who reacted "extremely negatively" by claiming that it was only a phase and that God had made her a male, so she could never be a woman.[3][4] She stated that this made her hate herself, and that she developed a form of depression.[3] Her mother sent her to Christian conversion therapists,[2][10] but Alcorn later related that here she only encountered "more Christians" telling her that she was "selfish and wrong" and "should look to God for help."[3] Aged sixteen, she requested that she be allowed to undergo transition treatment, but was denied permission: in her words, "I felt hopeless, that I was just going to look like a man in drag for the rest of my life. On my 16th birthday, when I didn't receive consent from my parents to start transitioning, I cried myself to sleep."[3]

Alcorn publicly revealed her attraction to males when she was sixteen, as she believed that identifying as a gay male at that point would be a stepping stone to coming out as transgender at a later date.[11][12] According to a childhood friend, Alcorn received a positive reception from many at Kings High School, although her parents were appalled.[12] In Alcorn's words, "They felt like I was attacking their image, and that I was an embarrassment to them. They wanted me to be their perfect little straight Christian boy, and that's obviously not what I wanted."[3][11] They removed her from the school, and enrolled her as an eleventh grader at an online school, Ohio Virtual Academy.[11] According to Alcorn, her parents cut her off from the outside world for five months as they denied her access to social media and many forms of communication. She described this as a significant contributing factor towards her suicide.[3] At the end of the school year, they returned her phone to her and allowed her to regain contact with her friends, although by this time – according to Alcorn – her relationship with many of them had become strained and she continued to feel isolated.[3]

Two months prior to her death, Alcorn sought out help on the social media website Reddit, asking users whether the treatment perpetrated by her parents was considered child abuse.[13][14] There, she revealed that while her parents had never physically assaulted her, "they always talked to me in a very derogatory tone" and "would say things like 'You'll never be a real girl' or 'What're you going to do, fuck boys?' or 'God's going to send you straight to hell'. These all made me feel awful about myself, I was Christian at the time so I thought that God hated me and that I didn't deserve to be alive."[14] Further, she explained, "I tried my absolute hardest to live up to their standards and be a straight male, but eventually I realized that I hated religion and my parents."[15] On Reddit, Alcorn also disclosed that she was prescribed increasing dosages of the anti-depressant Prozac.[14] In concluding her post, she wrote, "Please help me, I don't know what I should do and I can't take much more of this."[16]

Alcorn's computer was recovered near the site of her suicide. It contained conversations showing that she had planned to jump off the bridge that crosses Interstate 71 days before the incident, but then contacted a crisis hotline and, as told to a friend, "basically cried my eyes out for a couple of hours talking to a lady there".[17]

Death

Prior to her death on December 28, 2014, Alcorn had scheduled for her suicide note to be automatically posted on her Tumblr account at 5.30pm.[11] In the note, she stated her intention to end her life, commenting:

I have decided I've had enough. I'm never going to transition successfully, even when I move out. I'm never going to be happy with the way I look or sound. I'm never going to have enough friends to satisfy me. I'm never going to have enough love to satisfy me. I'm never going to find a man who loves me. I'm never going to be happy. Either I live the rest of my life as a lonely man who wishes he were a woman or I live my life as a lonelier woman who hates herself. There's no winning. There's no way out. I'm sad enough already, I don't need my life to get any worse. People say "it gets better" but that isn't true in my case. It gets worse. Each day I get worse. That's the gist of it, that's why I feel like killing myself. Sorry if that's not a good enough reason for you, it's good enough for me.[3]

She expressed her wish that all of her possessions and money be donated to a transgender advocacy charity,[3] and called for issues surrounding gender identity to be taught in schools.[3][10] The note ended with the statement: "My death needs to mean something. My death needs 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."[3][10][18] A second post appeared shortly after; titled "Sorry", it featured an apology to her close friends and siblings for the trauma that her suicide would put them through, but also contained a message to her parents: "Fuck you. You can't just control other people like that. That's messed up."[3][19][20][21] An additional, handwritten suicide note reading "I've had enough" was found on her bed, but then thrown away by Alcorn's mother after police made a copy.[17]

In the early morning of December 28, police informed news sources that she had been walking southbound on Interstate 71 near Union Township when she was struck by a semi-trailer just before 2:30 am near the South Lebanon exit.[22] She died at the scene. It is believed that Alcorn walked three to four miles from her parents' Kings Mill house, before being struck.[9] The highway was closed for more than an hour after the incident.[11] An investigation was launched by the Ohio State Highway Patrol,[22] while Alcorn's body was transported to the Montgomery County coroner, where an autopsy was scheduled.[11] The truck driver was uninjured in the incident.[23]

Within 48 hours of the posting of her suicide note, it had attracted 82,272 views,[11] and by the morning of December 31, it had been reposted on Tumblr 200,000 times.[10] Writing for the Boston Globe, the reporter Maura Johnston described it as a "passionate post".[10] The suicide note was later deleted after Alcorn's parents asked for it to be removed,[24] and the blog was made inaccessible to the public.[25] According to the family minister, the Alcorn family decided to hold the funeral privately after receiving threats.[26] Alcorn's body was reportedly cremated.[26] The Ohio State Patrol completed their investigation into Alcorn's death on April 30, 2015, officially ruling it a suicide.[17]

Reaction

Alcorn's parents

On December 28 at 2:56 p.m., Alcorn's mother, Carla Wood Alcorn, posted a public message on the social media website Facebook, stating: "My sweet 16-year-old son, Joshua Ryan Alcorn, went home to Heaven this morning. He was out for an early morning walk and was hit by a truck. Thank you for the messages and kindness and concern you have sent our way. Please continue to keep us in your prayers."[11][12][23] Carla Alcorn's post was subsequently deleted, and her Facebook account was made private.[23] The Alcorn family publicly requested that they be given privacy to grieve in a statement issued by the Kings Local School District.[11] In that statement, staff from Alcorn's former school, Kings High School, declared that "Joshua Alcorn was a sweet, talented, tender-hearted 17-year-old", adding that counselors would be made available to students affected by the incident.[11] A moment of silence was held in Alcorn's memory before a Kings High basketball game on December 30.[12]

A middle-aged white man with dark hair, wearing a dark top, talking in front of a microphone
LGBT rights advocate Dan Savage called for Leelah's parents to face legal prosecution in the wake of their daughter's death.

Some of Alcorn's sympathizers publicly criticized the teen's mother, Carla Alcorn, for misgendering her daughter in the Facebook post announcing the teenager's death.[27] Some individuals — termed "the Internet's self-appointed vigilantes" in The Washington Post — subsequently doxed and harassed Carla via her Facebook account "in revenge" for Leelah's death.[28] On Twitter, American gay rights activist Dan Savage argued that Alcorn's parents should be prosecuted for their role in bringing about their daughter's death, commenting that through their actions they "threw her in front of that truck". He cited the successful prosecution of Dharun Ravi following the suicide of Tyler Clementi as a legal precedent for such an action.[29][30][31] He added that legal action should also be brought against the conversion therapists who had counselled Leelah, and suggested that the Alcorns should lose custody of their other children.[5][29]

Carla Alcorn responded to such criticism in an interview with CNN, stating "we loved him unconditionally. We loved him no matter what. I loved my son. People need to know that I loved him. He was a good kid, a good boy."[18][32][33] Although acknowledging that Leelah had requested transition surgery, Carla stated that she had never heard her child use the name "Leelah", before reiterating her refusal to accept her child's transgender status, adding "We don't support that, religiously."[18][32][33] She expressed concern that users of social media thought her to be a "horrible person", but defended her actions in dealing with her child, stating for example that she had banned internet access to prevent access to "inappropriate" things.[32] In an email to Cincinnati-based channel WCPO-TV, Leelah's father Doug Alcorn wrote, "We love our son, Joshua, very much and are devastated by his death. We have no desire to enter into a political storm or debate with people who did not know him. We wish to grieve in private. We harbor no ill will towards anyone... I simply do not wish our words to be used against us."[8]

Writing for Salon, Mary Elizabeth Williams commented that "it would be cruel and inaccurate to suggest that Carla Alcorn did not love her child", but added that Carla's statement that she "loved him unconditionally" revealed "a tragic lack of understanding of the word 'unconditionally,' even in death."[34] People magazine quoted Johanna Olson, Medical Director for the Center of Trans Youth Health and Development at Children's Hospital Los Angeles, as stating that "Did Leelah's parents love her? Yes, I'm sure they did. Did they support her? No, they didn't. And that's a tragedy."[31] Mara Keisling, the Executive Director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, was quoted as stating that the blaming of Alcorn's parents was unhelpful, adding, "Despite the great cultural and policy advances transgender people have made, there is still a lot of disrespect, discrimination and violence aimed at us. And being a child or a teenager of any kind today is very difficult."[4]

Tributes, vigils, and activism

A selection of lit candles arranged along a grey stone wall.
A memorial placed against a wall following the London vigil, January 2015

The day after Alcorn's suicide note was published online, Chris Seelbach, the first openly gay councilman on Cincinnati City Council, shared it as part of a Facebook message in which he stated that her death showed how hard it was to be transgender in the U.S. His post was shared over 4,700 times and raised increased public awareness of the incident.[10][11][12] By December 30, Alcorn's death had attracted worldwide attention.[11] News outlets across the world had picked up the story, and the hashtag #LeelahAlcorn had topped Twitter.[11] According to British newspaper The Independent, the incident "triggered widespread anguish and raised a debate about the rights of transgender people",[18] while the U.S.-based Boston Globe stated that it "served as a flashpoint for transgender progress in 2014".[10]

On January 1, 2015, the Cincinnati-based LGBT rights group Support Marriage Equality Ohio hosted a vigil for Alcorn outside Kings High School.[8][35] A candlelight vigil in Goodale Park, Columbus, was held on January 2 by a group called Stand Up 4 Leelah.[35] A further vigil was organized by both The Diverse City Youth Chorus in partnership with the Cincinnati chapter of the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network at the Clifton Cultural Arts Center for January 10.[35] The vigil location at the Clifton Cultural Arts Center was moved to the Woodward Theater, to make way for a larger setting.[36][37] The event was attended by over 500 people.[38]

A January 3 vigil was scheduled for Trafalgar Square in London; an organizer was quoted as saying that "[Alcorn's] death was a political death. When a member of our community is brutalised at the hands of oppression we must all fight back".[39] Those who spoke at the event included politician Sarah Brown and novelist and poet Roz Kaveney.[40] Marches were carried out in honor of Alcorn in both Northwest, Washington, D.C., and Queen Street, Auckland, on January 10.[41][42][43] The same day, a candlelight vigil was held in New York City's Columbus Circle.[44] A memorial protest against conversion therapy and in memory of Alcorn took place in Lynchburg, Virginia, on January 24, 2015.[45]

Among the transgender celebrities who publicly responded to the incident were Janet Mock, Andreja Pejić, and Laverne Cox,[46][47] while the musician Ray Toro released a song, "For The Lost And Brave", in dedication to Alcorn.[48][49] Jill Soloway, the writer of television show Transparent, dedicated her Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series to Alcorn.[50] During Diane Sawyer's interview with Caitlyn Jenner (then Bruce), which confirmed Jenner's transgender identity, Alcorn was mentioned by name and the message "Fix society. Please" was broadcast.[51] In June 2015, the singer Miley Cyrus founded the Happy Hippie Foundation, an organisation to raise awareness of homelessness and LGBT issues among young people, partly in response to Alcorn's death.[52] To promote the organisation, she released a new series of Backyard Sessions videos, the second of which, Dido's "No Freedom" was dedicated to Alcorn.[53]

Celebrities like Jill Soloway (left) and Laverne Cox (right) publicly responded to Alcorn's death.


Carolyn Washburn, editor of the Ohio newspaper The Cincinnati Enquirer, stated that the incident "raises important issues we hope will prompt conversations in families throughout our region."[11] Washburn had also received letters that derided the newspaper's use of Alcorn's chosen name in covering her death.[54] When contacted by The Cincinnati Enquirer, Shane Morgan, the founder and chair of transgender advocate group TransOhio, stated that while 2014 witnessed gains for the trans rights movement, Alcorn's death illustrated how "trans people are still being victimized and still being disrespected", highlighting the high rate of transgender people who had been murdered that year.[11] Since the incident, TransOhio received letters from parents of transgender children describing how Alcorn's death had affected them.[32] Morgan stated that while he understood the anger directed toward Alcorn's parents, "there's no excuse for threats to the family."[32]

Allison Woolbert, executive director of the Transgender Human Rights Institute, informed The Independent that Alcorn's case was "not unique"; the newspaper highlighted research from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicating that LGBT youth are about twice as likely to attempt suicide than heterosexual, cisgender teenagers.[5] Newsweek similarly placed Alcorn's suicide within its wider context of transphobic discrimination, highlighting that the Youth Suicide Prevention Program reports that over 50 percent of transgender youths attempt suicide before the age of 20, and that the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs recently published a report indicating that 72 percent of LGBT homicide victims in 2013 were transgender women.[47] Kevin Jennings of the Arcus Foundation also situated Alcorn's death within wider problems facing young LGBT people. In his view, she became "an international symbol of the ongoing challenges faced by LGBT youth", adding that her death "reminds us of a basic lesson still being taught to young people across America: When it comes to gender identity, it's best to be cisgender; and when it comes to sexual orientation, it's best to be straight."[55]

Under the Twitter hashtag #RealLiveTransAdult, many transgender people posted encouraging tweets for their younger counterparts,[56] while other hashtags, such as #ProtectTransKids, and the term "Rest in Power", also circulated on Twitter.[57][58][59] A change.org petition was set up calling for Leelah's chosen name to be included on her gravestone,[27] which gained over 80,000 signatures.[37] On January 6, Adam Hoover of Marriage Equality Ohio remarked that, since the request of having Alcorn's chosen name on her gravestone seemed "like a slim possibility", they would be raising money for a permanent memorial arranged as a bench, tree and commemorative plaque.[37] The Ohio Department of Transportation put up signs on the interchange of Interstate 71 South and Ohio State Route 48 in Warren County, where Alcorn died, to show that a group adopted that part of the road in memory of Alcorn.[60]

Leelah's Law

A middle-aged, mixed race man with brown skin and closely cropped, greying hair smiling at the viewer. He is wearing a suit with a blue tie, with a small lapel badge containing the flag of the United States.
In the wake of Alcorn's death, President Obama pledged to support a ban on conversion therapy.

A Facebook group called "Justice for Leelah Alcorn" was established,[61] while a petition calling for "Leelah's Law", a ban on conversion therapy in the United States, was created by the Transgender Human Rights Institute to raise awareness of the psychologically harmful effects of such practices; by January 24 it had 330,009 signatures,[62][63][64] and was named the fastest growing change.org petition of 2014.[65] A second appeal demanding the enactment of "Leelah's Law" was posted to the We the People section of WhiteHouse.gov on January 3, 2015, which garnered more than 100,000 signatures as of January 30.[66] In response to the petition, in April 2015 President Barack Obama called for the banning of conversion therapy for minors.[67][68][69]

In December 2015, Cincinnati became the second U.S. city after Washington, D.C., to ban the practice of conversion therapy outright; council member Chris Seelbach cited Alcorn's suicide as an influence in the decision, stating that "She challenged us to make her death matter, and we're doing just that."[70]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Mohney, Gillian (December 31, 2014). "Leelah Alcorn: Transgender Teen's Reported Suicide Note Makes Dramatic Appeal". ABC News. Archived from the original on January 2, 2015. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
  2. 1 2 Margolin, Emma (January 3, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn's suicide note pointed out societal problems". MSNBC. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Alcorn, Leelah (December 28, 2014). "Suicide Note". Tumblr. Archived from the original on January 1, 2015. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 Gander, Kashmira (December 30, 2014). "Transgender teenager Leelah Alcorn took her life because 'parents would not allow her to transition'". The Independent. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved December 31, 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 Molloy, Antonia (January 1, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn: Transgender teenager's parents should be prosecuted, says gay rights activist". The Independent. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved January 1, 2015.
  6. ↑ Blistein, Jon (December 30, 2014). "Trans Teen Pens Heartbreaking Suicide Note". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  7. ↑ Urquhart, Vanessa Vitiello (January 2, 2015). "Prosecuting Leelah Alcorn's Parents Won't Help Isolated, Bullied Trans Kids". Slate. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  8. 1 2 3 Law, Jason (January 1, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn's dad: 'We love our son'". WCPO Cincinnati. Archived from the original on April 10, 2015. Retrieved April 8, 2015.
  9. 1 2 "Transgender teen struck and killed on Ohio interstate in apparent suicide". LGBTQ Nation. December 29, 2014. Archived from the original on March 23, 2016. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
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  13. ↑ Bacardi, Francesca (January 2, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn's Mom Refuses to Accept That Her Child Was Transgender". E!. Archived from the original on April 18, 2015. Retrieved January 2, 2015.
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  15. ↑ Glum, Julia (January 2, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn Update: Mom Of Transgender Teen Speaks, Tumblr Suicide Note Deleted And #RealLiveTransAdult Flourishes". International Business Times. Archived from the original on April 18, 2015. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
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  18. 1 2 3 4 Buncombe, Andrew (January 1, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn suicide: petition calls for transgender teenager's chosen name to be used on her tombstone". The Independent. Archived from the original on April 26, 2015. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  19. ↑ Hilton, Perez (December 31, 2014). "Transgender Teen Leelah Alcorn Left A Strong Message In Her Sorry Note For Friends & Family – Read It HERE". PerezHilton.com. Archived from the original on June 8, 2015.
  20. ↑ "Transgender teen asks for her suicide to 'mean something' and 'fix society'". RT. December 31, 2014. Archived from the original on January 2, 2015. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  21. ↑ Boroff, David (January 2, 2015). "Mom of Ohio transgender teen who took her own life says she did not 'support' child's gender change". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 28, 2015. Retrieved October 27, 2015.
  22. 1 2 Molski, Henry (December 30, 2014). "Boy, 17, hit and killed by semi on I-71". Cincinnati.com. Archived from the original on January 20, 2017. Retrieved December 30, 2014.
  23. 1 2 3 "Transgender teen asks for her suicide to 'mean something' and 'fix society'". RT. December 31, 2014. Archived from the original on March 7, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  24. ↑ Vultaggio, Maria (January 4, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn's Parents Had Tumblr Suicide Note Deleted; Transgender Teen Mourned At High School". International Business Times. Archived from the original on March 14, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
  25. ↑ Duffy, Nick (January 3, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn's blog and suicide note deleted from Tumblr". PinkNews. Archived from the original on June 21, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2015.
  26. 1 2 Fieldstadt, Elisha; Newell, Scott (January 2, 2015). "Funeral for Transgender Teen Leelah Alcorn Moved Because of 'Threats'". NBC News. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  27. 1 2 Dockterman, Eliana (December 31, 2014). "Transgender Teen's Death Sparks Outcry From Advocates". Time. Archived from the original on April 12, 2016. Retrieved October 26, 2015.
  28. ↑ Dewey, Caitlin (December 31, 2014). "Leelah Alcorn's death was tragic, but harassing her parents is not the answer". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on January 1, 2015. Retrieved January 1, 2015.
  29. 1 2 Badash, David (January 1, 2015). "Dan Savage: Parents Of Trans Teen Leelah Alcorn 'Threw Her In Front Of That Truck'". The New Civil Rights Movement. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  30. ↑ Broverman, Neal (January 2, 2015). "Savage: Parents of Trans Teen Who Ended Life Should Be Prosecuted". The Advocate. Archived from the original on March 23, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  31. 1 2 Helling, Steve (January 2, 2015). "Suicide of Transgender Teen Leelah Alcorn Sparks Emotional Debate". People. Archived from the original on December 29, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  32. 1 2 3 4 5 Fantz, Ashley (January 4, 2015). "An Ohio transgender teen's suicide, a mother's anguish". CNN. Archived from the original on June 11, 2016. Retrieved January 1, 2015.
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  34. ↑ Williams, Mary Elizabeth (January 2, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn's mom mourns a "good boy"". Salon. Archived from the original on March 15, 2017. Retrieved April 22, 2016.
  35. 1 2 3 Tweh, Bowdeya (January 1, 2015). "Vigils planned to mourn Leelah Alcorn". Cincinnati.com. Archived from the original on May 3, 2016. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  36. ↑ Saker, Anne (January 6, 2015). "2nd Leelah Alcorn vigil moved to Woodward Theater". Cincinnati.com. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  37. 1 2 3 "Leelah Alcorn: Group raises money for memorial for transgender teen who committed suicide". WCPO. January 7, 2015. Archived from the original on August 26, 2016. Retrieved January 7, 2015.
  38. ↑ Saker, Anne (January 10, 2015). "Woodward Theater vigil for Leelah Alcorn draws 500". Cincinnati.com. Retrieved June 23, 2017.
  39. ↑ Duffy, Nick (January 2, 2015). "Vigils to be held tomorrow for transgender teen Leelah Alcorn". PinkNews. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  40. ↑ Duffy, Nick (January 4, 2015). "Photos: London vigil for transgender teen Leelah Alcorn". PinkNews. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  41. ↑ Lavers, Michael K. (January 8, 2015). "D.C. march to honor Leelah Alcorn scheduled". The Washington Blade. Archived from the original on February 23, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  42. ↑ Smith, Caitlin (January 10, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn: Auckland march in support of trans teens". 3 News. Archived from the original on March 12, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  43. ↑ Shields, Jennifer Katherine (January 9, 2015). "Transgender advocates plan rally in support of Leelah Alcorn". Scoop. Archived from the original on June 17, 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
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  45. ↑ Walter, Ashlie (January 24, 2015). "Transgender community rallies against conversion therapy". The News and Advance. Retrieved January 26, 2015.
  46. ↑ Vultaggio, Maria (December 30, 2014). "Leelah Alcorn's Transgender Suicide Prompts Response From Laverne Cox, Andreja Pejic, Janet Mock". International Business Times. Archived from the original on February 16, 2015. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  47. 1 2 Mejia, Paula (December 30, 2014). "Suicide of Transgender Teen Sparks Heightened Advocacy for Trans Rights". Newsweek. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  48. ↑ Avery, Dan (January 2, 2015). "Ray Toro Of My Chemical Romance Dedicates New Song To Memory Of Leelah Alcorn". New Now Next. Archived from the original on August 12, 2015. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  49. ↑ M. Smith, Alex (January 2, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn Song: Ray Toro Dedicates New Single "For the Lost and the Brave" To Transgender Teen [LISTEN]". Music Times. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  50. ↑ McCormick, Joseph Patrick (January 12, 2015). "Amazon’s ‘Transparent’ writer dedicates Golden Globe to Leelah Alcorn". PinkNews. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  51. ↑ Brennan, Patrick (April 25, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn referenced during Bruce Jenner interview". The Cincinnati Enquirer. Retrieved May 3, 2015.
  52. ↑ (Petrusich, Amanda (June 9, 2015). "Free to Be Miley". Papermag.com. Paper Communications. Retrieved June 24, 2017.)
  53. ↑ Saul, Heather (May 9, 2015). "Miley Cyrus pays tribute to late transgender teen Leelah Alcorn as she launches homeless LBGT Happy Hippie Foundation". The Independent. Retrieved 26 June 2017.
  54. ↑ Gelwicks, Andrew (January 13, 2015). "A Tender Age for Suicide: Inside Leelah Alcorn's Memorial Service". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on February 24, 2016. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  55. ↑ Jennings, Kevin (2015). "Leelah Alcorn and the Continued Struggle for Equity for LGBT Students". The Educational Forum. 79 (4). p. 344. doi:10.1080/00131725.2015.1069512.
  56. ↑ "Leehlah Alcorn: Transgender Teen's Death Inspires #RealLiveTransAdult Hashtag". ABC. December 31, 2014. Archived from the original on April 12, 2016. Retrieved October 26, 2015.
  57. ↑ McCoy, Terrence (December 31, 2014). "Transgender teen who died of an apparent suicide: ‘Fix society. Please.’". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on July 5, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
  58. ↑ Romano, Aja (December 31, 2014). "#RealLiveTransAdult gives trans teens hope after Leelah Alcorn tragedy". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on October 26, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
  59. ↑ "Transgender teen pleads in suicide note: ‘My death needs to mean something’". WGNtv. December 31, 2014. Archived from the original on October 26, 2015. Retrieved January 4, 2015.
  60. ↑ Saker, Anne (November 20, 2014). "Stretch of I-71 where teen died now part of Adopt-A-Highway program". Cincinnati.com. Archived from the original on November 25, 2015. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
  61. ↑ Molloy, Antonia (January 2, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn: Devout Christian mother of transgender teen says 'we don't support that, religiously' as she continues to refer to her 'son'". The Independent. Retrieved January 12, 2015.
  62. ↑ Mintz, Zoe (December 31, 2014). "Leelah Alcorn's Transgender Suicide Sparks 'Leelah's Law' Petition To Ban Conversion Therapy". International Business Times. Retrieved October 26, 2015.
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  64. ↑ Molski, Henry (January 3, 2015). "'Leelah's Law' petition: 200K signatures in 2 days". Cincinnati.com. Archived from the original on October 26, 2015. Retrieved January 3, 2015.
  65. ↑ Nichols, James (January 8, 2015). "Leelah Alcorn's Death Inspires Fastest Growing Change.Org Petition Of 2014". The Huffington Post. Archived from the original on 14 April 2016. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  66. ↑ Kellaway, Mitch (January 30, 2015). "Petition for 'Leelah's Law' Banning Conversion Therapy Heads to White House". The Advocate. Retrieved January 31, 2015.
  67. ↑ Shear, Michael (April 9, 2015). "Obama to Call for End to 'Conversion' Therapies for Gay and Transgender Youth". The New York Times. Retrieved April 9, 2015.
  68. ↑ McCarthy, Michael (April 13, 2015). "Obama supports ban on therapy to change sexual orientation of youth". BMJ: British Medical Journal (350). London. doi:10.1136/bmj.h197.
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  70. ↑ McCormick, Joseph Patrick (December 10, 2015). "Cincinnati becomes second US city to ban 'gay cure' therapy". PinkNews. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved April 22, 2017.
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