>> Bullied 15-Year-Old Commits Suicide Days After Coming Out As Transgender
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Il était étudiant en art et terminait brillamment sa première année au lycée public de «Horlick», dans le Wisconsin. Mais, Cameron Langrell n’a pas surmonté les violences dont il était victime au sein même de son école. La semaine dernière, l’adolescent de 15 ans a choisi de mettre fin à ses jours, peu après avoir annoncé en ligne qu’il était transgenre.
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«Retrouver le corps sans vie de son enfant dans le sous-sol de sa maison, c’est un drame que je ne souhaite à aucun parent», déclare Jamie, la mère de Cameron, profondément éprouvée : «Il avait tout essayé pour s’adapter aux autres. Nous l’avions encouragé à rester lui-même. Nous le soutenions, peu importe ses choix. Il avait trouvé le courage pour s’affranchir et avait fait son coming out. Mais il était devenu la cible constante de menaces, d’injures insidieuses…»
En décembre 2013, «persécutée» par ses camarades, Lexi Lopez, étudiante également au lycée «Horlick», s’était suicidée.
Une véritable épidémie :
Jamie Olender et son époux, Eric, réclament aux chefs des districts et responsables de la supervision des personnels enseignants, d’éducation… notamment de «Horlick», de s’impliquer davantage et mener des actions préventives contre le harcèlement, sensibiliser aux bons réflexes pour remédier à la situation et faire en sorte que la victime n’en soit plus une.
Dans son communiqué, la porte-parole de l’établissement s’est déclarée profondément affectée par la disparition de Cameron, soulignant qu’une cellule de crise avait été mise en place pour soutenir les élèves, professeurs et familles. Elle a également assuré que les dispositifs déjà instaurés pour lutter contre les phénomènes de harcèlement seront encore améliorés pour que tous les élèves puissent se côtoyer et s’épanouir dans un climat serein.
L’occasion de rappeler que le suicide de Cameron Langrell est malheureusement le dixième déclaré cette année d’un jeune trans aux États-Unis.
Terrence Katchadourian
@stop_homophobie
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>> Cameron Langrell was almost finished with his freshman year at Horlick High School, but the artistic student took his own life last week just days after he officially announced online that he was transgender.
“You don’t want what we had when you come home for work and find your child. I would never wish that on another parent,” Jamie Olender said.
Jamie and her husband, Eric Olender, found Cameron’s lifeless body in the basement after he took his own life.
His distraught parents said Cameron was a victim of severe and constant bullying at Horlick High School after he came out. His parents also said they were always very supportive of Cameron.
“Our hope is that it stops here, that Cameron’s voice will be heard,” Jamie Olender said.
WISN 12 News adds:
The Olenders said they were very close to their son and encouraged Cameron to just be himself.
“Whoever you like doesn’t matter with us, and it shouldn’t matter with you or your friends. They love you for you,” Eric Olender said.
But Cameron still struggled to fit in with his classmates.
His parents said he recently got the courage to come out online as transgender and then just a few days later, he was dead.
Jamie and Eric said they think something happened at school and want district leaders to get more involved with the ongoing bullying at Horlick high.
“There needs to be more within the school, not just some outside resource. It needs to be taught in school,” Jamie Olender said.
Cameron isn’t the first student at Horlick to commit suicide from bullying.
WISN 12 News covered the vigil of Lexi Lopez who took her own life in December 2013.
The Olenders don’t want another family to go through their pain.
“Hug them every day because you never know which day is going to be the last day you hug them,” Jamie Olender said.
A Racine Unified School District spokeswoman released this statement:
We are heartbroken by the loss of Cameron. Our district crisis team has stepped up to provide support for all of our Horlick students, staff and families these past several days. We have programs in place to ensure all students have a positive place to learn.
We will continue to work with our entire Horlick family to enhance these programs.
Advocate adds:
Meanwhile, Langrell’s death is the tenth reported suicide of a trans youth in the U.S. this year, in an “epidemic” that trans advocates say sees far more casualties than make headlines. Last week, gaming communities mourned the suicide of 23-year-old developer Rachel Bryk, while last month 15-year-old Michigan trans boy Sam Taub took their life. The highly publicized suicides of 18-year-old Charlotte, N.C., activist Blake Brockington, as well as that of 17-year-old trans girl Leelah Alcorn in Union Township, Ohio, last December, saw hundreds of thousands mourning worldwide.
