There's been some upsetting news cross my path. A potential little sister has been gunned down. To be fair, this occurred in February, but only recently came
to my attention.
15 year old Larry King was shot and killed, and there was question if she was TG or simply gay, and does that play into the shooting. The dressing issue is relevant,
if only to make people aware that it may be more than a "gay" thing. If Larry actually was TG in some way/shape/form, then there may be deeper issues than "flirting"
with hetero males. We are talking expression of the femme side here; and that for a 15 year old is often expressed through hormonal floods that are hard enough to
control when considered "normative."
From a post on TrannyWeb: “Larry had been dressing en femme at school since January 2008. This could lead to an issue of what were Larry's rights to dress as she
chose.” Schools have the right to dictate certain things in order to keep the peace. Do the students have certain civil rights? Sure they do. Illegal search and seizure of
their lockers, backpacks, etc.
I'm sorry to disagree with some folks--kids shouldn't always have the right to wear what they want. In some areas, that causes more trouble than making them all wear
uniforms. It becomes a pick `em at that point in time, and some school districts have chosen to fight the uniform battles than fight clothing that is provocative, out of good
taste, and possibly gang related. Peer pressure in today's teen society looms so much larger than it did when we were younger, and stuff we wouldn't have dreamed of
wearing when we were in high school is almost considered normal now.
Back to Brandon McInerney: in my less than expert but somewhat trained opinion, he certainly could not handle being called gay. (For all that, most hetero 14 year old
males can't...where I come from, "Them's fightin' words.") Again, peer pressure in today's teen society looms so much larger than it did when we were younger. “Kids
threw wet paper towels at him in the boy's restroom.” This passed mere name calling.
Whether or not Larry was gay/TG, there was a murder committed here. Again, from the article: “…although more than a year ago he had begun attending meetings of
a support group for gay, bisexual and transgender youth at the Ventura County Rainbow Alliance in Ventura.” That says to me at least that there were some questions,
questions that needed answering.
Should Brandon be tried as an adult? Absolutely. A murder is a murder is a murder. Should Brandon get some help before, during and after his trial?
You bet.
This kid has a sad history, I grant you. (That's no excuse, by the way.) "This whole situation is extremely upsetting and sad…this poor kid (Larry) didn't have a chance,
but it's not like Brandon had a chance, either." Even though there are better ways to handle things, here is a young man that truly needs some help to deal with things.
