Morgan Hanna
On February 8th, 2024, Nex Benedict, a transgender sophomore at Owasso High School, Oklahoma, who used he/they pronouns (preferred he), passed away in his home just a day after being released from the hospital after a physical altercation with three other students in the restroom. Nex was a 16-year-old student of the Choctaw nation, who loved nature, video games, drawing and his cat Zeus.
According to CNN, Nex recalled the altercation he and his friends had with three girls in the women’s restroom, where the situation escalated to the point of physical violence, in which Nex was repeatedly beaten before falling unconscious. Nex was taken to the nurse’s office before being sent to the hospital, where he was later released the same day of the assault. The next day, Nex collapsed in his home, and was sent back to the hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Nex’s death comes at a time of increased uncertainty and anxiety for the LGBTQ community, with many US states passing a plethora of anti-LGBTQ laws in recent years. In the case of Nex’s passing, many advocates for LGBTQ rights have pointed fingers at SB 615, a law recently passed in Oklahoma, Nex’s home state, that mandates students K-12 to use the restrooms of their assigned sex at birth. This law often keeps transgender and genderqueer students from using the restroom of their gender, and is facing criticism from allies of the LGBTQ community for being perhaps the most prominent reason that lead to Nex’s passing.
Many have connected this recent tragedy to an older one, the brutal murder of Matthew Shepard, a 21-year old gay man who died in the hospital on October 12, 1998, after being beaten and tied to a fence outside of Leremy, Wyoming five days prior. Some advocates and allies connect Nex and Matthew’s deaths because both are seen as martyrs in the long fight for LGBTQ rights and acceptance. Matthew Shepard is still remembered to this day for the violent hate crime that killed him, and while authorities state that Nex did not die from trauma caused by his attack, he was attacked for his identity nonetheless, just like Matthew.
In times such as these, especially in the wake of tragedy, it is essential to educate yourself and others about the world around you, whether it be on state laws or community rules. Empathy, understanding, and acceptance must be shown to every community and group of people, especially those who face increasing discrimination for their identities and beliefs. I will end this article by requesting all readers and students of WHS to be kind to one another, in the present and future. No matter what happens, respect one another so that one day our country can be a safe space for all.