After the family’s GoFundMe (which used Nex’s deadname) for funeral expenses passed its $15,000 goal, Sue Benedict wrote in an update that excess funds will be donated to “other children dealing with the right to be who they feel they are,” in Nex’s name. The fundraiser had raised over $120,000 as of February 23. Mourners have also been asked to donate in Nex’s name to Bikers Against Child Abuse.
What was Nex Benedict’s cause of death?
On March 13, the Oklahoma medical examiner’s office released a summary of a toxicology report which stated that Benedict’s probable cause of death was the “combined toxicity” of diphenhydramine and fluoxetine, per the New York Times. Diphenhydramine is an antihistamine found in allergy medications like Benadryl, while fluoxetine is an antidepressant medication commonly known as Prozac. The full toxicology report will be available on March 27, according to local CBS affiliate KOTV.
How have LGBTQ+ advocates responded to the official cause of death?
Advocates and lawmakers alike have called for a more comprehensive investigation into the circumstances surrounding Benedict’s death. Nicole McAfee, executive director of the LGBTQ+ advocacy organization Freedom Oklahoma, said that the report “offers, for a second time, only limited insight into a decision about possible cause of death for Nex Benedict.” GLAAD CEO and president Sarah Kate Ellis echoed that sentiment, saying in her own statement that “there is nothing in this one-page document to explain why the medical examiner checked a box.”
“[We]e have said from the beginning that whether Nex died as a result of the physical or emotional harm he was subjected to, our elected officials, our appointed State Board of Education, Owasso High School, and all of us failed Nex in allowing for policies and rhetoric that created a regularly hostile environment for a kid just trying to live as his authentic self,” McAfee said. “Nothing in this report changes the responsibility to keep our young people safe.”
Freedom Oklahoma is also calling for the immediate resignation of Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Education Ryan Walters and state library advisory board member and Libs of TikTok creator Chaya Raichik, as well as “any other policymaker who has and continues to contribute to Oklahoma’s culture of anti-trans bigotry.”
How has President Joe Biden responded to Nex Benedict’s death?
On March 14, the White House issued a statement about Benedict’s passing, with the President writing that he and First Lady Jill Biden are “heartbroken” by the loss.
“Every young person deserves to have the fundamental right and freedom to be who they are, and feel safe and supported at school and in their communities,” Biden said. He also stated that “we must all recommit to our work to end discrimination and address the suicide crisis impacting too many nonbinary and transgender children.” Biden did not, however, mention the explosive wave of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in state legislatures over the past few years.
A recent Washington Post analysis of FBI data found that school hate crimes targeting LGBTQ+ children have “more than quadrupled” in states that have passed laws that restrict queer and trans students’ rights.
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