Owasso Public Schools graduate Marley H. in the Human Rights Campaign’s new ad. Photo: Screenshot
A little over two months after the death of trans teen Nex Benedict, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has released a new ad featuring an Owasso High School alum describing the culture of anti-LGBTQ+ bullying she experienced first-hand at the school Benedict attended.
Benedict’s February 8 death occurred a day after a violent altercation with three other students in an Owasso High School bathroom. It was ruled a likely suicide by the Oklahoma state medical examiner but has nonetheless drawn national attention to the plight of LGBTQ+ students in both the Owasso school district and in Oklahoma more broadly. Benedict, who friends said identified as transgender and primarily used he/him pronouns, reported being bullied by the three students, who he said beat him until he “blacked out” because of his gender identity.
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LGBTQ+ advocacy organizations have criticized the school and the Owasso Police Department for their response to both the fight that preceded Benedict’s death and to what current and former students have described as a culture of rampant anti-LGBTQ+ bullying. In February, Human Rights Campaign (HRC) president Kelley Robinson called on Attorney General Merrick Garland to launch a Department of Justice investigation into Benedict’s death. Robinson also wrote to U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona asking his department to use the enforcement mechanisms at its disposal to prevent future tragedies like Benedict’s death from happening. In March, the U.S. Department of Education announced that it would launch an investigation into the Owasso Public School District.
In the HRC ad, released Monday, 2022 Owasso graduate Marley H. highlights school officials’ failure to address anti-LGBTQ+ bullying. She recounts an incident on a school trip in which a teacher refused to intervene when another student repeatedly used an anti-LGBTQ+ slur to refer to her and her friends.
“It hurts to know that not only do your teachers personally not support you, if a student bullies you or harasses you or calls you names, they aren’t going to do anything about it,” she says. “It promotes a culture where you feel like you shouldn’t report issues.”
Her message for teachers who ignore bullying and harassment: “Look around at what happened to students like Nex Benedict. That’s the gravity of the situation. That’s what happens when you see something, and you don’t say anything.”
Marley’s account echoes those of other current and former Owasso students who participated in a walk-out in late February. While Owasso Public Schools’ student conduct code officially prohibits bullying, students told NBC News that they were unaware of the district’s bullying policies and expressed skepticism at the school’s willingness to address reports.
“Even if something did happen, there’s no point in going to any kind of administration or teachers about it because absolutely nothing will be done,” Ally, an Owasso senior and friend of Benedict’s, said at the time. “I’ve seen it time and time again with my friends.”
Marley points to a “trickle-down effect” in which students hear anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric from their parents, who hear the same rhetoric from Oklahoma Republicans pushing anti-LGBTQ+ legislation. “Those children hear what their parents say. And those children are going to school. And that rhetoric that is being passed down from our elected officials to our parents to our children then affects entire school districts.”
Chief among those elected officials is Oklahoma’s anti-LGBTQ+ Superintendent of Public Instruction Ryan Walters (R). Even before Benedict’s death drew national attention, Walters had already been criticized by Republican and Democratic state lawmakers for appointing Chaya Raichik, the anti-LGBTQ+ hate influencer behind Libs of TikTok, to Oklahoma’s library advisory committee in January.
In a February 28 letter to the Oklahoma state legislature following Benedict’s death, over 350 public figures and LGBTQ+ rights groups urged lawmakers to remove Walters. And in March, HRC launched “Walters Watch,” a campaign to hold Walters accountable for what the organization described as his “extremist rhetoric and mismanagement of Oklahoma schools” which it says has led to a culture of anti-LGBTQ+ bullying and harassment.
“We’ve heard many students at Owasso and elsewhere in Oklahoma speak truth to power and stand up against the culture of bullying and harassment fostered by people like Ryan Walters,” Robinson said in a statement. “Marley’s story breaks our hearts as much as it angers us. There is a way forward, however. Each time someone speaks out about what they have seen, experienced, or heard, the truth becomes harder and harder to deny. The first step on the journey to healing is for Ryan Walters to go.”
If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 or chat at 988lifeline.org. The Trans Lifeline (1-877-565-8860) is staffed by trans people and will not contact law enforcement. The Trevor Project provides a safe, judgement-free place to talk for youth via chat, text (678-678), or phone (1-866-488-7386). Help is available at all three resources in English and Spanish.
