The mayor of Smith Station, a small town in Lee County, Alabama, committed suicide after a photo of himself cross-dressing was released. Accordingly, some are criticizing that the media in question committed outing (disclosure of gender identity without the person’s consent).
According to multiple American media outlets, including NBC News, on the 7th (local time), Bubba Copeland (49), a Baptist pastor and mayor of Smith Station who was elected in 2016, was found dead on the 3rd. It has been two days since the conservative media outlet ‘1819 News’ published a photo of Copeland in crossdressing on the 1st.
The media reported that Copeland had been operating a private Instagram account under the name ‘Britney Blesser Summerlin’, and that this account posted numerous photos of Copeland dressed as a woman, including wearing women’s underwear and leopard-print clothes. It was revealed that there was.
Copeland deleted the account, saying, “It’s just a hobby to relieve stress.” Afterwards, he pleaded with the media not to report this photo considering the pastor’s status and family, but 1819 News did not accept this.
After the article was published, Copeland told his congregation, “I have become the target of an internet attack. I know that I am neither a good-looking man nor a beautiful woman, so for humor I took a picture with my wife at home. This will not change my life. “I have nothing to be ashamed of,” he said.
However, Copeland made an extreme choice two days after this article was published, and criticism emerged that his outing on ‘1819 News’ led to his death. Former Alabama Senator Doug Jones said, “The treatment Copeland received is sad and disgusting,” and criticized, “We live in a vile world where the self-righteous throw the biggest stones.”
Meanwhile, it is said that Copeland only defined his cross-dressing as ‘cosplay’ and did not specifically reveal his sexual identity. The media stated, “The subject of the article was his sexually explicit behavior while serving as mayor and pastor.”
※If you have concerns that are difficult to talk about, such as depression, or if you have family or acquaintances around you who are experiencing such difficulties, call the suicide prevention hotline ☎1393, mental health hotline ☎1577-0199, the hope hotline ☎129, the life hotline ☎1588-9191, You can receive counseling from experts 24 hours a day through the youth hotline ☎1388, youth mobile counseling app ‘Dog Who Will Listen to Everything’, KakaoTalk, etc.
Song Chi-hoon,
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.