Laverne Cox Speaks Out About Leelah Alcorn

On Tuesday, the world learned about a 17 year old from Ohio named Leelah Alcorn when she posted her suicide note on Tumblr. On Sunday, she walked out onto an Interstate in Cincinnati and was struck by a tractor trailer. Alcorn was a transgender teenager who struggled to feel accepted and loved as her true self by her family and society. In her note, she expresses how she was rejected by her loved ones and told she was "wrong" to live her life as the woman she always felt she was. She wrote, "The only way I will rest in peace is if one day transgender people aren’t treated the way I was, they’re treated like humans, with valid feelings and human rights." Many members of the LGBT community have spoken up about the tragedy, including trans icon Laverne Cox.

Cox posted on her Twitter and Instagram accounts about the overwhelming sadness she felt over the loss of Alcorn, and she commented frequently that trans lives matter. Though there have been strides in the past year to make trans stories more visible in the media with shows like Orange is the New Black and Transparent, there is clearly still a long way to go for trans acceptance and trans rights. Hopefully Alcorn's story will raise more awareness and help create the change she wished to have.

Take a look at Cox's outpouring of grief:

If you or anyone you know is thinking about suicide, call the National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-8255 or the Trans Lifeline: (877) 565-8860.