Transgender Teen Who Was Named High School Homecoming King Commits Suicide at 18

Very sad news for this young person, his family and the LGBT community

This is so incredibly sad.

Blake Brockington, an 18-year-old transgender teen from Charlotte, has committed suicide just over a year after his former school East Mecklenburg High School named him North Carolina's first transgender homecoming king. Brockington died Monday night of an apparent suicide, police confirmed to The Charlotte Observer.

Back in February 2014, Brockington, who lived as a female until sophomore year, won the title of homecoming king after winning a fundraising competition at his high school. The late activist raised an impressive $2,555.55 for his charity, Mothering Across Continents.

After becoming his state's first transgender homecoming king, Brockington told local LGBT newspaper QNotes, "I honestly feel like this is something I have to do. Nobody should be scared to be themselves, and everybody should have an equal opportunity to have an enjoyable high school experience."

Brockington also opened up about being rejected by his birth family after revealing he's transgender. "That was single-handedly the hardest part of my trans journey," Brockington, who lived with a foster family before his death, said. "Really hateful things were said on the Internet. It was hard. I saw how narrow-minded the world really is."