Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently made controversial remarks about his estranged transgender daughter, claiming she was “killed” after undergoing gender-affirming care. He expressed this sentiment during a Monday interview with psychologist and conservative commentator Jordan Peterson, where he criticized gender-reassignment surgery, labeling it as “child mutilation and sterilization.”
Musk discussed his daughter’s transition, stating that she, Vivian Jenna Wilson, announced her identity at 16 and received gender-affirming care during the pandemic. He described feeling misled during this process, claiming he was pressured to sign documents related to her care under the belief it was necessary to prevent a potential suicide.
He further criticized the treatment of children who are not of age to give consent, agreeing with Peterson that promoting such care is “incredibly evil” and suggested that those who support it should face imprisonment. Musk, who has a total of 12 children, claimed he was never informed that puberty blockers could be considered “sterilization drugs,” despite the fact that these blockers do not directly affect fertility.
In his remarks, Musk stated, “I was tricked into doing this. I lost my son, essentially,” referring to the concept of “deadnaming” as indicative of his loss. His comments come in the wake of his announcement that X and SpaceX will be relocating from California to Texas, partly in response to California’s AB1955 legislation, which protects transgender rights in schools and mandates resources for LGBTQ+ children.
Musk has faced longstanding accusations of transphobia. His daughter, Wilson, applied for a legal name change in 2022, stating she no longer wishes to be associated with her father. Musk has attributed their strained relationship to the progressive education system in Los Angeles, as noted in Walter Isaacson’s biography on him. Recent years have seen Musk shift from a center-left political stance to embracing more right-wing viewpoints, particularly concerning issues like diversity, election integrity, and immigration.