Nex Benedict (they/them & he/him) was a 16-year-old indigenous and non-binary student who died on February 8th in an Oklahoma hospital for undisclosed reasons. Nex, a trans student at Owasso High School in Oklahoma, was attacked by 3 female students in their school bathroom on February 7th of this year.
On February 7th, Nex was using the girl’s bathroom of their school, which he legally had to use because of a 2022 law. Nex saw these girls that he didn’t know and thought they were going to be rude to him, so they threw water at the girls. They then attacked him; grabbing his hair and beating him, and as a result, he shoved one of the girls into a towel dispenser. Unfortunately, things escalated from there leading to Nex passing out.
Reports say a student and/or teacher heard their head slammed from outside the bathroom. No one from the school called 911 for police or medical help for Nex even though security cameras saw Nex having trouble walking, littered with bruises, and the fact he passed out in the bathroom. The only consequence the 3 girls have faced is a 2-week suspension from school.
The same day Nex went to the hospital to get checked up on. Afterward, their grandmother called the police to which they told the family to not press charges as he “essentially started it… it’s a mutual fight” because he threw water at the girls.
The next morning Nex’s grandmother called 911 because Nex passed out again and was later pronounced dead. A little over a month later and the reason for Nex’s death has yet to be revealed. Most people are saying they died from head trauma from the beating.
Nex’s family, friends, community, and people just like him around the world are trying to find justice for Nex and other victims of hate crimes such as this.
