Leelah Alcorn’s Mom Insists She Loved Her Child

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The mother of a transgender teen, whose suicide note went viral after her death on Sunday, insisted in a recent interview with CNN that she loved her child unconditionally. The teen who was born Josh Alcorn revealed in her suicide note that she had felt “like a girl trapped in a boy’s body” since she was 4 years old and had “cried of happiness” upon discovering the meaning of the term “transgender” at 14.

At the end of the note, which was programmed to publish on Tumblr after the teen’s death, her birthname Josh was crossed out and replaced by the name Leelah. The teen then tragically committed suicide on Sunday night around 2:30 am by stepping in front of a semi-truck.

The heartbreaking suicide note, which was deleted from Tumblr after Leelah’s death is still available on the Facebook page of Cincinnati City Councilman Chris Seelbach. The councilmen accompanies the note with the resolution “we have to do better.”

In parts of her note, Leelah revealed that the lack of her parents’ acceptance of her gender identity, as well as society’s treatment of transgender people, were the motivations for her suicide. The revelation has sparked a rush of strong emotions across the world of social media, a large amount of which is being funneling into criticism of Leelah’s parents.

In a recent interview with CNN however, Leelah’s mother Carla appeared not only heartbroken by the death of her child, but also a bit blindsided. Carla told CNN that Leelah had only spoken to her about her gender identity once and that she had never heard her use the name Leelah. She also indicated having had a hard time understanding the teen’s gender identity in light of her religious convictions.

“We don’t support that, religiously,” Leelah Alcorn’s mother told CNN Wednesday. “But we told him that we loved him unconditionally. We loved him no matter what.” Mrs. Alcorn admitted that she did speak once with her child about transitional surgery but that the reasons she gave against it where financial. “I loved my son. People need to know that I loved him. He was a good kid, a good boy.”

Mrs. Alcorn also revealed that she and her husband where worried about their other children who are also heartbroken about losing their sibling. She explained that the family has received a rush of hate filled criticism and have been unable to bury their child due to concerns about protesters.

As Leelah said in her suicide note, “My death has to mean something.” For better or worse, this beautiful girl’s wish is now in the hands of the society she left behind.

If you or anyone you know is struggling with gender transition, a great list of support groups can be found on IamTransgendered.com. Support for Transgender people and their families is also available through PFLAG National.

If you are struggling to reconcile your religious beliefs with your own or a family member’s transgender identity, consider reaching out to other transgender Christians through organizations such as TgChristians.Org and TransChristians.org.

Leelah Alcorn’s Mom Insists She Loved Her Child