>

Republicans have no shame and deserve NO Respect, esp in KY where they caused the death of this young person.
My daughter died by suicide recently.  I know they'll never read this, but my heart goes out to the family. >

My Grandfather committed suicide this last Monday. The pain it leaves the family in I can’t even describe. >

I commented on the post above you but I wanted to make sure you saw it too. r/SuicideBereavement has been a very supportive space since I lost my dad 5 years ago. Take care of yourself. Those first few weeks can feel like you’re living on the wrong planet, but it will get easier. >

The "she" is in reference to his mother. >

They committed suicide. If you are feeling like you might self harm 988 has been designated as the new three-digit dialing code that will route callers to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. >

The comment above says they used He/him pronouns. >

Sorry? The person’s sentence you’re replying to is grammatically correct, so what’s the issue? I don’t think an article about a tragic suicide is really the time for pedantry. >

Many binary trans people (trans women and trans men) don’t like being “they’d” when the go by he/him or she/her pronouns. They consider it a form of misgendering. >

That’s unfortunate for them, but seeing as how you “they’d” them in your very same message explaining why it’s problematic, maybe you can understand that the English language doesn’t work the way you seem to want it to. 
Pronouns function to make sentences less clunky. “They” is the best neutral third-person pronoun available in the English language. 
I can absolutely sympathize with someone who doesn’t want to be misgendered, but if you’re going to start considering neutral language as gendered language then the problem lies with you for misinterpreting someone else’s words. >

The person you are replying to was obviously using the plural “they” because they were referring to multiple persons. >

You just “they’d” the commenter I’m replying to. Was that rude? Should you have asked their pronouns before doing that? 
Or is it just possible that by using a neutral pronoun you were, in fact, being neutral? 
What timeline are we in where neutrality is interpreted as aggression? >

Hydrochloric_Comment used “they” correctly because they don’t know my pronouns or gender. I used they to refer to them because I don’t know Hydrochloric’s pronouns either. 
Using “they” as a default like that is totally fine!
The key difference is we know Henry’s pronouns are he/him. >

So is it your position that gendered pronouns must be used in all cases where they are applicable, or only in the cases of discussing trans individuals? >

“Henry Berg-Brousseau, a transgender rights advocate whose story helped inspire opposition to trans-restrictive legislation in Kentucky, has died. He was 24.”
Gotta be real depressing living in Kentucky >

There’s not enough bourbon to make it worth living in. >

Can confirm. I made it less than 5 years and had to come back to the upper Midwest. >

Hell, I didn’t realize how good I had it in the upper Midwest until I moved a bit south.  The lower Midwest has all of the depression of the upper Midwest with none of the charm.  Can’t imagine what it would be like even further south in Kentucky; we’ve got it good up here. >

I don't know. The Missouri Ozarks are pretty damn beautiful, and I've spent a lot of time there. The hillbillies though...as long as you stay on their good side and stay away from rhe church folk. >

So, stay alone, is what you are saying... >

Can you not make friends with varieties of people as long as they treat you respectfully? >

They said stay away from church folk. According to Pew Research only 20% of adults in Missouri are "non-religious" and 7% that make up that 20 are "Nothing in particular but religion is important". So 13% are actually not church folk. >

That number still isn't zero. >

No, it’s not zero. However, many religious people still wear their code of ethics and morality on their sleeve like a badge of honour. And the strength they can possess within that esteem is interlaced through every thread that IS the fabric of their being. Now, I’m not saying you can’t engage in small talk with those folks, but at best- you’re only acquaintances, not friends. Friendship simply can’t exist between someone who is LGBTQ+ and another whom thinks gay people are going to hell. It can’t exist between someone who’s atheist and another who thinks you will burn eternally for heresy. That being said, there are people that TRY really hard to convince themselves that their friendships with those who oppose their sexual orientation, spiritual beliefs etc are “real”… but in my and many others’ personal experience.. it’s a facade. All it means is that they haven’t encountered the “break it” moment yet, which is always inevitable…. Unless a religious, conservative zealot can walk themselves back and admit they were/are wrong.. which can happen, but it’s rare.. >


“The vitriol against trans people is not happening in a vacuum,” Berg said in a statement. “It is not just a way of scoring political points by exacerbating the culture wars. It has real world implications.”

It's the sanctimonious attitude of anti-trans activists that makes me the most angry. It's bad enough they are hateful. But acting like they are doing the world a favor is so much worse. >


It's the sanctimonious attitude of anti-trans activists that makes me the most angry. It's bad enough they are hateful.

First thing that popped in my mind was Rowling's recent "Merry Terfmas" tweet.  I feel so gross thinking about it after reading this news >

This is what I hate most about the person JK Rowling has become. I could disagree all day long with her if she simply had her opinions about women's bathrooms or whatever, but I could at least be remotely civil. If you actually see her smug petty vindictive rhetoric it's painful. She's not just wrong, she's an asshole and she clearly has started talking pleasure in making people uncomfortable. She's become a troll, telling people she only cares about "their mental health" and "the safety of real women" out of one corner of her mouth, and reveling in "owning the libs" out of the other. She has become truly disgusting. 
My wife would have killed herself as a young teen from the abuse she suffered as a child but held on because of Harry Potter. She has said the only reason why she's alive today is because the series gave her something to hold onto and look forward to. And now this same woman who gave joy to an entire generation of children not just holds disgusting beliefs, but rubbing shoulders with far right hate groups with histories in hate towards PoC and the rest of the LGBTQ community not just Trans, and above all taking time out of her day to intentionally try to hurt marginalized and attacked group. She WANTS people to be hurt. >

I loved the Harry Potter series but looking back with hindsight, this isn't who JK has become. It's who she has always been. Just look at the goblins, or Cho Chang, or Rita Skeeter if you want something related to transphobia. >

Or the race of elves who really like being subservient slaves by nature. And how Hermione gets treated as a nosy, annoying, busybody activist for wanting to free them. >

I remember Henry from the piece John Oliver did. He was so brave. It was sickening to watch those lawmakers pat him on the back and then pass the bill anyway. Truly a loss. >

Oh my god, I remember that piece. This was him? I remember how gross I thought it was that the people he was talking to denied him the very basic and reasonable things he was advocating, while at the same time hyping him up just to look good and appear progressive. >


“This lack of acceptance took a toll on Henry. He long struggled with mental illness, not because he was trans but born from his difficulty finding acceptance.”

This is what we should take from this tragedy: what leads trans people and other marginalized groups to suicide isn't being part of those groups, but the lack of acceptance and the abundance of hate they receive. >

I read that for people who de-transition, lack of acceptance and hate are cited as commonest reason. >

And de-transition isn't even that common - but it is constantly used by the exact people that fight against Trans Rights on why Trans is 'bad'. The numbers, even with an increase of people that feel more free to come out and let that egg crack, stayed the same. 1-2% de-transition. And it is almost exclusively because of social reasons, and almost never because of not feeling right in their transitioned-to gender. >

Very good point - there's almost no other medical field in where such a low rate of 'regret' - i.e. 1-2% - is heard of. And to add to that, those 'regrets' and subsequent de-transitions are not because of physical problems associated with transitioning, but because of social aspects. Nobody that is having a knee or hip replacement is shunned by their community for having a knee or hip replacement. >

Every suicide of someone who felt they didn’t “fit in” is an indictment of our society. There’s room for everyone. You don’t have to like them or even approve of them, but they still deserve a place.
If we can’t accept them, then the great experiment is no more. >

Also this is so much worse than people “falling through the cracks”. Our society is eating these people alive. >

Agreed. Society is actively against them... and until people are at least as hesitant to be actively anti-trans is considered as unacceptable as it is to be actively anti any race, those of us that are pro self-determination need to keep actively supporting the trans community. >

Were they the person who gave a speech to the board of the school district about being allowed to use the bathroom that aligned with their gender identity and every member of the board spoke supportively to them and then voted nay? >

Yes, they were. >

This is so sad. Our family lost my brother and sister to suicide in 2013, and you always remember it. >

I’m really tired of people branding all suicide as a result of mental illness. He wasn’t sick. He wanted to escape being literally attacked every day just for existing. That is not sickness. That is a living hell that anyone would want escape from, and would also end up taking desperate measures if everything else failed.  
I wish people would just understand that there is no pill, no therapy that can ever cure the damage that hate does. There was nothing to cure within him because he was not sick. 
Want to know who is sick? The ones who attacked him. >

I agree with most of what you said. I’m attacked for my beliefs. It isn’t hard to just drop it and take care of YOURSELF for a few days or a few years. Put the electronics down and enjoy what the world has to offer. We all have to find a way to ignore people’s opinions when we need to. For our own well being. It’s all very sad. >

Mental illness should not be taken lightly… >

I'd rather someone be vague and base their comment on what is in the article than jump to what they want the conclusions to be, like a lot of people in this thread have done. >

I know some will use this as a “good riddance” from the Christian right. 
As a Christian I want to extend my deepest condolences to the family and pray that Henry’s soul finds peace. 
Love is the answer, not hate. >

Another casualty in the good fight. Reach out to others, let them know you love them and that you always will.
We will reach that hilltop together, so long as we don't give those who would tear us down one inch.
Rest easy, friend. >

Everybody lost here. The world became a little dimmer. The country as a whole became a worse place to live (or you could say further accelerated its ongoing decay.)
Sometimes i wish i could peek into an alternate reality where conservatives got what they wanted, just so i could watch them tear each other apart as they continually narrow their criteria for what is “acceptable” like they always do. They seem to strongly desire that, kind of how doomsday preppers all seem to think they would become that one special survivor, not realizing they’d just be another one of the blank faces at the bottom of the new food chain.
Some sort of right-wing downvote brigade is going on here, too. They’re skulking around, like vermin are wont to do, keeping hidden and anonymous because they know they are wrong. You hit the down arrow without leaving a comment explaining yourself… Because you can’t come up with a single word that would make sense, you realize how incoherent you would sound. It’s just an emotional feeling you can’t resist, like a wild animal. How does it feel to know you became defiled by evil? You weren’t strong enough, your will was too weak. It won against you, defeated you for good and corrupted your mind. I wonder if that’s what you imagined you’d become when you were a child, growing up? That the mark you left on the world would be a just another stain on the history of human progress?
Yes, i firmly believe you are evil - because there is nothing positive about someone being bullied to suicide. And you actively contribute to that bullying by harrassing those holding a memorial for the deceased. Sometimes i wonder if you are even conscious and sentient, or if it’s some kind of virus or parasite that ate its way into your brain and makes you do its bidding, trying to use your body to tear your own people down.
Seeing as you hate us so much, we’re clearly not your people - so how about you leave to be with yours instead of spending time here, envying how much more we are than you? Does it upset you that we wouldn’t follow, when you trail after us everywhere we go? >

So so sad, they dedicated their lives to help others find acceptance. Henry will never be forgotten. There are still millions of people in the US who believe trans folks are mentally I’ll in 2022 and it blows my mind. >

Reading comprehension >

The suicide rate of Transgender folks is staggering.  Like 40%?  The article didn't even need it in the title to assume the cause by the audience. >

Minor clarification, the 40-ish% statistic refers to suicidality, not actual suicide rate. Suicidality is a measure of suicide attempts or serious ideation. 
It's just much, much easier to research suicidality in a case like this. To find suicide rate, you'd have to dig through a whole bunch of reported suicides and try to figure out which ones are trans. That can be pretty difficult to do depending on how much public information there is about the person, or even how out they were prior to their death. 
It's way easier to just ask a whole bunch of trans people if they've ever attempted suicide or been suicidal, so that's what researchers tend to do. >

Not to mention knowing how many people WANT to self-harm is a pretty important statistic :( >

Whenever I see a title like this, I just assume suicide because it is so common in the LGBTQ+ community. So young and what a tragedy. It sucks that this happened before the holidays and I feel bad for their family.
There seems to be no justice for shit like this and all of it could be prevented if people weren't so shitty to marginalized groups. Humans are humans, point blank and period. >

If only they got help from a mental health professional. So sad. >

That wouldn't have changed the fact that he was surrounded by people who hated him, and wanted him dead/ jailed/ legally persecuted. >

I find it hard to believe someone would surround themselves with those people. >

By being involved with activism he was more exposed to it than some, but that isn't really a problem with him.
There's a nationwide movement to scapegoat trans people and portray LGBT people as perverts and a danger to children and it's pretty disheartening all around.  
The rights of trans youth to access effective healthcare are being curtailed in several states under the guise of protecting them (against their wishes), and anyone who cares to fight for them is made into a target for bigoted abuse. >

With the push to sexualize kids I can see parents side on this for sure. I mean kids don’t need to attend drag shows. I’m willing to bet an effort to remove predators from these orgs would have been an appropriate step in addressing concerns. >

What kind of drag shows do you think parents are bringing their kids to? Like specifically, what are you picturing when you imagine these shows? >

Children should be children they don’t need exposed to them. Please don’t make a comparison to any other theatrical costumes.  No, it’s not the same. >

>Please don’t make a comparison to any other theatrical costumes.
I'm not. I'm asking you what you think these shows are like? Do you want to answer the question or do you want to continue to dodge? >

I’ve been to them thanks. There is no dodging. They always turn perverted in some manner. For the ones I’ve attended it was 100% of the time. >

And those were children's shows? Like, there were 5 and 6 year olds there? What specifically did you see? You say the shows turned perverted. What specifically happened? How did the parents of those young children respond? If you're telling the truth, you should have no problem recounting the specifics. >

Very sad. Must have been a very hard path to walk. >

Transitioning reduces suicide rates back to the rate of the general population. Lack of acceptance, like your post, drives these suicides.
The research shows that gender transition improves well-being, and that it can redress the specific health conditions that the military claims are its primary concern, particularly suicidality. A 1999 United States study found a “marked decrease of suicide attempts” and substance use in its postoperative population. In a 2014 British study, gender transition “was shown to drastically reduce instances of suicidal ideation and attempts.” The study reported that “67 percent of respondents thought about suicide more before they transitioned and only 3 percent thought about suicide more post-transition.” ... Research suggests that gender transition may resolve symptoms completely. A 2016 literature review by scholars in Sweden concluded that, most likely because of improved care over time, transgender “rates of psychiatric disorders and suicide became more similar to controls,” and that for those transitioning after 1989, “there was no difference in the number of suicide attempts compared to controls.” The corollary is also true: Another study found that withholding hormone treatment from transgender people increased the risk of depression and suicide. >

I’m not trans, but I’ve been terrified by the anti-trans rhetoric. I’m so sad he had to be subjected to that all the time, seeing it get worse instead of better. >

You don't have to be trans to be hated by Republican fascists. They're posting pictures of cis people on social media with little arrows pointing to features that they decide reveal those people to be secretly trans. Anyone they dislike or don't want to fuck. 
Hate for a minority harms everyone, even the haters. >

I know that’s happening a lot too, particularly with female athletes, but trans people are getting the worst of it. >

Heartbreaking at any age, but so young like this is especially tragic. >

Especially given the valuable work Henry was doing to make the world a better place and increase visibility and education. >

Protect Trans Kids isn't just a slogan, it's something we all actively have to do.
EDIT. LOL downvotes. Eat it bigots! >

Protect ~~Trans Kids~~ people who are trans isn't just a slogan, it's something we all actively have to do.
FTFY
And, so this is where, I feel, believe, and have observed first hand, as some who is trans, where the LGBTIQA "leadership" of all the nonprofits continuously get it wrong, the overfocus on youth, and the lack of resources and support once folks turn 18.
I raise a glass to Henry for his valiant fight for the diversity of humanity. >

~~“This house is on fire!”~~
~~“Spray every house here with water, all houses matter!”~~
~~Stop it. Don’t “all lives matter” this.~~
Edit- I’m an idiot. Sorry, u/Striking-Extreme8920. >

Except the post we're commenting on is about a 24-year old man who committed suicide because of lack of support. If anyone here is "all lives matter"ing anything, it would be the comment talking about Trans youth. >

This is so fucked up. Humans can be hideous cruel. RIP young man, the world is dimmer in your absence. >

Honestly, "humans can be hideously cruel" should be one of the first and most important lessons drilled into people's heads.  Not that people ARE cruel, but can be.
When you understand people can be cruel, and that's just the way of the world you can stop trying to rationalize the cruelty.  Stop wondering if it's about your reaction to something you did, and just accept that cruel people exist.
When you think the world is generally a good place, you try to rationalize that against the bad things you see and those rationalizations can range from "They must deserve it" to  "I must deserve it". Because that's how you can reconcile bad shit happening in a good world.  There needs to be a reason, and those suffering must deserve it, or else the world isn't fair and good.
When you accept that people can be cruel and bad or good shit can happen regardless of what someone deserves, you then see the importance of your own behavior.  People can be cruel, so it's all the more important that you won't be.  God's not going to balance the karma scales in your life, so it's all the more important that you be just.  
Then accept that you can be the kindest, most just person possible, and bad shit will still probably happen to you that you don't deserve.  
Life is just dealing with shit that happens to you, and then dying. >

Henry IS a hero and and inspiration. Rest in peace brother >

Fucking hell, RIP Henry 🤴.
Hopefully society can get our act together soon. Like, how many more trans kids have to die until we collectively start to treat them with the basic humanity & kindness they deserve? >

What terrible + sad news. RIP >

These are the real life consequences the right wing media bubble causes. >

I'm so sorry. I tried to kill myself earlier this year but just couldn't bring myself to cut deep enough. The south east U.S is hell for trans people moreso than I think other areas of the country but I could be wrong. >

I’m glad you are still here, I’ve had similar experiences with suicidal ideation. The world is not fair but at least there’s some compassionate people. >

2 things: 1. That is horrible, I recently was rescued from my last attempt and spent time in a ward. I don't understand the exact struggle, but I do understand.
2. I thought the person in this photo was my age and I'm 36. >

Two people I was acquaintances with and friends on FB (how I found out) with committed S this year . These are depressing, crippling times . RIP >

I was told that the average life expectancy of a trans person is 35 years. Then later I was told that not true. >

I've heard people say this but I've seen exactly zero studies to support it. It seems like it's fake.