Pro-transgender groups want to conceal the manifesto of transgender school shooter Audrey Hale from public scrutiny. Hale killed three children and three adults after leaving a still-hidden manifesto explaining her motives, according to Metropolitan Nashville Police Chief John Drake.
Republicans such as Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) are calling for the manifesto to be released, but several LGBT organizations are calling for the manifesto to remain hidden from the public. The executive director of Children of Lesbians and Gays Everywhere (COLAGE) Jordan Budd stated, “It should not be published.” Budd also pivoted away from the shooter’s motive and directed the focus on firearm ownership, saying, “The focus should be on how this was able to happen in the first place. There should not be such easy access to deadly weaponry.”
Meanwhile, the national president of the Log Cabin Republicans, a pro-LGBT GOP organization, also argued against releasing the manifesto. Lauren McGinnis, the spokesperson for a pro-trans organization called PFLAG, told Newsweek that releasing the manifesto could increase the risk of social contagion, adding that “the contents don’t change the outcome of the tragedy.”
Tucker Carlson asserted that if the manifesto were to be released, it “would make the obvious undeniable,” adding, “The trans movement is targeting Christians, including with violence.” “Yesterday’s massacre did not happen because of lax gun laws. Yesterday’s massacre happened because of a deranged and demonic ideology that is infecting this country with the encouragement of people like Joe Biden,” Carlson added.
In the pro-transgender counter-protesters in Murfreesboro, Tennessee, just south of Nashville, one protester held a sign reading “TRANS GIRLS NEED GUNS.”
The spokesperson for the Metro Nashville Police Department stated, “We will not be releasing the manifesto during an open investigation.” But if the manifesto were to be released, it could shed light into root causes, and help prevent similar violent acts in the future. However, some argue that releasing the manifesto could increase the risk of social contagion and inspire others to take similar violent acts for attention.
Elements of the transgender movement adopted extreme and aggressive rhetoric leading up to the deadly shooting. Many activists claimed that there is a “war” against transgender people or that there is a “genocide” being carried out against them that necessitates resistance. The discussion on whether to release the manifesto or not remains controversial, with both sides presenting compelling arguments.