Leelah Alcorn is sadly one more name to add to an already long and tragic list of casualties. As a mom whose son’s name is on that list, I cannot sit idly by and remain a bystander. I must speak up, because these tragedies must stop. Human life is too precious and too fragile.
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We, as a culture and society, must teach our youth that all life has a value and a purpose. The only way to make a difference in this world – to truly change hearts and minds – is through living life to the fullest. Ending one’s life cannot create change. Only by embracing life and using each and every day we have been blessed with to its full advantage can we create the kind of world we want to experience and see around us – a world that encourages and supports us to be ourselves, wonderfully and perfectly made in God’s image.
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Sadly, it appears our loss of Leelah, a beautiful and innocent youth, brings us back to the religious dogma of many communities of faith who refuse to see the harm they are causing by teaching hate. The time has come to say “enough.” We must make our faith communities welcoming places of respect and inclusion for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity.
As the Gospel of John says, the thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. Jesus came to bring abundant life. And so I urge our churches to echo that message by teaching our youth that each of their lives are important and truly needed in this world. If we share this message of life, if we make sure everyone knows they are loved, that they are perfect in God’s eyes exactly as they are, then our youth would stop harming themselves.
RELATED: Leelah Alcorn’s suicide note pointed out societal problems
Our faith communities should be a place to find refuge from the hostile, angry world that wants to judge and condemn people like Leelah so very quickly. We keep talking about “love,” but what does love really look like? Love can never harm someone. Rather, love should encourage and sustain them. Faith communities should be leading the way in helping parents support their children.
Too often, professions of love come with an asterisk alongside them. These qualifiers and contradictions cause many children to live in such pain and anguish that they think daily about hurting themselves.
My husband Joseph and I started the Tyler Clementi Foundation because we wanted to honor our son Tyler and continue conversations that were started after he died by suicide in September 2010. We wanted to make sure no one else would ever suffer the same pain, hurt, or shame that Tyler faced after he had been web cammed in a private sexual encounter with another man in his college dorm room. No one should ever feel inferior or broken, for any reason, and especially not for being gay, which was exactly how God made Tyler.









