Tesla CEO Elon Musk recently made controversial remarks regarding his transgender daughter, claiming she was “killed” after undergoing gender-affirming care. This led him to express his determination to “destroy the woke mind virus.”
Musk shared his views during an interview with psychologist and conservative commentator Jordan Peterson, which aired Monday. He criticized gender-reassignment surgery, labeling it as “child mutilation and sterilization.” His daughter, Vivian Jenna Wilson, received gender-affirming care during the pandemic and came out as transgender at the age of 16.
“I was essentially tricked into signing documents for one of my older boys,” Musk stated, referencing Wilson, who has since chosen not to use her father’s surname. He explained that this decision occurred amid the confusion of the COVID pandemic and concerns about his child’s mental health.
Musk also condemned the practice of providing gender-affirming care to minors, describing it as “incredibly evil” and suggesting that individuals advocating for it should face imprisonment. He expressed his belief that he was not adequately informed that puberty blockers are essentially sterilization drugs, despite the fact that these blockers alone do not affect fertility.
“I was tricked into doing this,” Musk lamented. “I lost my son, essentially. They call it ‘deadnaming’ for a reason. The reason they call it ‘deadnaming’ is because your son is dead.”
His comments come shortly after Musk announced plans for his companies, X and SpaceX, to relocate to Texas, in response to California’s AB1955, known as the SAFETY Act. This legislation prevents schools from mandating parental notification if a child identifies as transgender and obliges the state to provide resources for LGBTQ+ youth. Musk has faced allegations of transphobia and has been criticized for promoting anti-trans rhetoric in the past.
In 2022, Musk’s daughter sought a name change and a new birth certificate, expressing in court that she wished to sever all ties with her father. Musk has attributed the breakdown in their relationship to the influence of her progressive school in Los Angeles, which is discussed in Walter Isaacson’s biography of Musk. This strained relationship with Wilson is suggested to underlie Musk’s increasingly vocal “anti-woke” sentiments.
In recent years, Musk has shifted from his previously moderate political stance to adopt more right-wing viewpoints, covering various topics including diversity initiatives and immigration. Earlier this month, he endorsed Donald Trump and Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, both prominent figures in the oil industry and critics of clean energy efforts.