Saudi trans woman Eden Knight reportedly took her own life after leaving behind a seemingly scheduled tragic s*icide note on Twitlonger.
Trigger Warning: This article contains mentions of s*icide and transphobia. Discretion is advised.
Knight began her heartbreaking note by saying that she had already taken her own life before the message went public:
“If you’re reading this, I’ve already k*lled myself. I have given life every opportunity, I have given myself every chance to get better. But I couldn’t do it, I wasn’t strong enough, I don’t think there was a universe where I was ever strong enough to survive this.”
She revealed that she was living in the U.S. until last year and decided to take her own life after being sent back to Saudi Arabia, denied hormone medication and forced to “de-transition.”
Knight dubbed her parents as “strict conservative Muslims” and claimed that they hired “fixers” who promised to solve the tension between her and her parents.
A cybersecurity person named Michael Pocalyko and his associate Ellen started speaking on the former on-call, eventually convincing her to leave Georgia and move to Virginia.
Michael and Ellen reportedly met Eden Knight at a train station along with a Saudi lawyer named Bader. She was then taken to a hotel and allowed to experience Washington D.C. Knight wrote:
“I genuinely was optimistic and believed this could work.”
However, Knight soon lost touch with Michael and Ellen and could not stay in contact with Bader. She alleged that the lawyer started coercing her into de-transition.
“He tried to get me to be 'normal.' Gave me examples of feminine men and said that they are transgender but they are hiding it, that it’s better to hide it. Told me stories personally about people he knew that successfully hid it.”
Knight shared that she was also “entirely dependent” on Bader for food and shelter and could not run away as she was an illegal immigrant in the U.S. She eventually gave and started following the orders before getting back in touch with her parents:
“I did everything he asked, I cut my hair, I stopped taking estrogen, I changed my wardrobe, I met my dad. And then I had another breakdown. My mom kept telling me to repent or I was going to hell, and I did, I repented.”
Eden Knight was eventually sent back to Saudi Arabia, a Middle Eastern country where trans people face severe discrimination. In her note, Knight wrote that back at home, her mother searched her belongings and electronic devices every day.
She was berated as a “freak” after her mother found out about her private photos and her father called her “a failure and an abomination.”
“There was no escape from my situation. I was destroyed, but I wanted to keep going.”
Knight shared that it was “traumatizing” after her family found her HRT. They also found it for the second time, prompting the former to take a month off the hormone medication.
The young trans woman shared that she was “done fighting” when her family found her HRT for the third time. She said she did not want to live if she could not transition.
What is known about Eden Knight?
Eden Knight was a 23-year-old trans woman who recently took her own life after being sent home to Saudi Arabia from the U.S. and forced to de-transition.
She reportedly attended an American high school in the suburbs of Washington DC and another international school in Riyadh before taking admission at George Mason University to study computer science.
As per her close friends, Knight’s international scholarship ran out before she could graduate, which led to the expiration of her visa. She was reportedly “terrified” of being deported back to Saudi Arabia due to her trans identity and hoped to claim asylum in the US.
Knight began her hormone replacement therapy (HRT) in 2022, which reportedly improved her mental health. Her friend Merrick Deville created a document about the former’s life and death and shared that Knight made friends on Twitter while she was still in the closet and came out during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Her friends described her as a “light in the trans community” and said everyone remembers her for her “humor and kindness.” They also noted that Knight “possessed an inner strength” that deserves recognition.
Eden Knight’s partner, who is known as Parker on Twitter, also mentioned the former “touched the lives of so many people.” Prior to her demise, Knight reportedly became active in LGBTQ and left-wing circles on social media and garnered over 20K+ followers on Twitter.
Twitter demands justice for Eden Knight’s tragic demise
Trans woman Eden Knight’s tragic s*icide left the LGBTQ+ community extremely heartbroken. In the wake of her death, several social media users also demanded justice.
The hashtag #JusticeForEden began trending on Twitter, with netizens coming together to speak out against the conditions that led to Knight taking her own life:
In her painful s*icide note, Knight said that she failed to continue her journey even though she wanted to be a leader. She also hoped that trans rights would be achieved worldwide in the days to come:
“I wanted to be a leader for people like me, but that wasn’t written to happen. I hope that the world gets better for us. I hope our people get old. I hope we get to see our kids grow up to fight for us. I hope for trans rights worldwide.”
Eden Knight’s death was also confirmed by members of her family using her deadname on a now-private Twitter account.