Via: The Advocate
Just days after Racine, Wis., teen Cameron Langrell announced to friends and classmates online that she identified as a transgender girl, switching her Facebook gender identifier to “female,” the 15-year-old took her own life at home on May 1.
The artistic freshman had faced incessant bullying at Horlick High School, family and friends told Racine’s Journal Times. Enamored with singing, playing piano, dancing, and cheerleading, Langrell — who had also recently started dating a male classmate — apparently faced much teasing for appearing “feminine,” according to her mother Jamie Olender. “We told [Cameron] be who you are,” she said of the family’s response.
Olender tells the Times that in the weeks before Langrell’s death, she and Langrell’s stepfather, Eric Olender, had noticed their child starting to skip school to avoid being harassed; when Langrell got home, however, she reportedly continued to face taunting on social media.
Editor’s Note: If you or a young person you know is LGBT and thinking about suicide, please call The Trevor Lifeline at 1-866-488-7386 or the Trans Lifeline at 1-877-565-8860. For adults over 24, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
