Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently spoke about his estranged transgender daughter, claiming that she was “killed” after receiving gender-affirming care. He expressed his intent to combat what he calls the “woke mind virus” during an interview with psychologist and conservative commentator Jordan Peterson.
Musk described gender-reassignment surgery as “child mutilation and sterilization,” discussing his daughter, Vivian Jenna Wilson, who came out as transgender at the age of 16 and received gender-affirming care during the pandemic. He mentioned that he felt misled into signing documents concerning her care, stating that he was informed his child might be at risk of suicide.
He criticized the medical process available to minors, asserting that it is done to children who are below the age of consent, and echoed Peterson’s view that it is “incredibly evil” and that those who support it should face imprisonment. Musk, a father of 12, also claimed he was not made aware that puberty blockers were essentially sterilization drugs, although he noted that these drugs alone do not affect fertility.
Musk lamented, “I was tricked into doing this. I lost my son, essentially,” referencing the concept of “deadnaming,” which is the act of referring to a transgender person by their birth name. He emphasized that such a term highlights his feelings of loss.
These remarks come shortly after Musk announced that X and SpaceX, alongside Tesla, would relocate to Texas due to California’s AB1955, or the SAFETY Act. This legislation prohibits schools from requiring parental notification if a child identifies as transgender and mandates state resources for LGBTQ+ children. Musk has faced accusations of transphobia and promoting anti-trans ideologies.
In 2022, Musk’s daughter applied for a name change and a new birth certificate, indicating that she no longer wished to be connected to her biological father. Musk has attributed their estrangement to her progressive schooling in Los Angeles, a topic explored in Walter Isaacson’s biography of the entrepreneur. This strained relationship is suggested to influence Musk’s recent anti-woke rhetoric. In recent years, he has shifted from center-left to more right-wing viewpoints on issues like diversity, election fraud, and immigration, recently endorsing the Republican presidential ticket of Donald Trump and Senator J.D. Vance.