It wasn’t long before an Oklahoma teen who died at 16 became a martyr for a cause… and Chaya Raichik was turned into a villain.
For those of us who missed the beginning of the story, there was an incident in which a 16yo non-binary student by the name of Nex Benedict was in an altercation at school. The next day, she was found dead.
Wiki gives a good window into how the events were presented publicly, with Sue being the teen’s mother:
Sue Benedict said she was contacted by Owasso High School on February 7 and arrived to find Nex with bruises on their face and scratches on the back of their head. Sue was also informed that Nex was suspended from school for two weeks. On her own, Sue then took Nex to be examined at a nearby hospital and summoned the Owasso Police Department at around 3:30 p.m (CT).
Surveillance footage from the school hallway showed six students enter the bathroom where the incident occurred, before Nex and two students entered. During 21 minutes of bodycam footage from Nex’s interview with a school resource officer, recorded on the officer’s body camera in the emergency room at Bailey Medical Center in Owasso at around 4 p.m. on February 7, Nex told the officer that while they were in the school bathroom, “I got jumped,” and described details of the altercation, including that they “blacked out” while on the ground.
Nex recounted being in the bathroom with friends when they overheard comments about their group from a group of three girls that Nex had known for several days beforehand because of “antagonizing” conduct by the girls towards Nex. Nex said they poured water on the girls, and then “They came at me. They grabbed on my hair. I grabbed onto them. I threw one of them into a paper towel dispenser and then they got my legs out from under me and got me on the ground.” Nex said they were then beaten by the girls, and lost consciousness.
Notice, Nex initiated the physical confrontation by dumping water on them… and then complained about being ‘jumped’.
Despite there being no official statement about her cause of death until the autopsy, the public was led to believe her death was connected to the confrontation. She was hailed as a martyr of anti-LGBT violence.
Because the Libs of TikTok account had shone a light on one Oklahoma teacher, resulting in dismissal, Raichik was blamed as being somehow responsible for the teen’s death. That was in early February, when the incident first happened.
Social media saw posts like this one as a result:
She herself said that she hadn’t known that group of girls for more than a week, and the dispute was over clothing choices… which since that kind of sniping is has always been part of interpersonal dynamics, it doesn’t necessarily mean it had anything to do with being non-binary.
Benedict had said that she hadn’t known the girls prior to that week, and that she and her friends had been bullied for their clothes and the way they dressed. Benedict told police, per body cam footage, that she had approached the girls in the bathroom and poured water on them. — PostMillennial
Benedict had said that she hadn’t known the girls prior to that week, and that she and her friends had been bullied for their clothes and the way they dressed. Benedict told police, per body cam footage, that she had approached the girls in the bathroom and poured water on them.
A month later, the Medical Examiner has had time to examine the body and present his findings. Violence had nothing to do with it.
The medical examiner’s report listed probable cause of death as “combined toxicity” from two drugs, one of which is available over the counter and the other by prescription.
In a statement posted on its Facebook account Wednesday, following the release of the medical examiner’s report, the Owasso Police Department wrote, in part: “From the beginning of this investigation, Owasso Police observed many indications that this death was the result of suicide. However, investigators did not wish to confirm that information without the final results being presented by the Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s Office.” — NBC
A twitter thread by Chad Felix Green — himself a gay man who rejects the rainbow agenda — sheds interesting light on the issue:
Something to think about the next time the media tries to whip up outrage over whatever the next incident will be.
John The Baptist: A Rude Awakening Precedes A Great Awakening.
This timely little tome chronicles the politically incorrect ministry of one of God’s most effective wildmen, John the Baptist, who prepared the way for Christ’s ministry.
The abrasive message of repentance John preached 2000 years ago is still confrontational and offensive today — but it is also life-changing.
In our putrid, worldly culture that has turned away from God, this book is a must-read for every Christian.
Available in paperback for those of you who like the feel of the pages in your hot, little hands, on Kindle to keep it right at your fingertips, and as an epic Audiobook.
