New information regarding the mental state of the 23-year-old Minnesota mass shooter is coming to light.
Read: Minnesota massacre: The shooter’s mother worked at the Catholic school where the 23-year-old opened fire
It is recalled that in Minneapolis, Minnesota, 23-year-old Robin Westman opened fire inside a Catholic church-school, killing two children and injuring at least 17 people.
The shooter, who ultimately took his own life, had posted a disturbing manifesto online just hours before the attack, expressing deep confusion and disappointment about his gender identity, among other things, according to the New York Post.
Minnesota: He was tired of being “trans,” the shooter wrote
In his handwritten text, much of which was encrypted using a combination of English and Russian Cyrillic characters, Westman admitted he felt “tired of being trans” and believed he had “brainwashed” himself.
At one point he wrote: “I wish I had never convinced myself. I still keep my long hair because it’s the last remnant of my identity as trans. But they tire me. I will cut them on the day of the attack.”
The case has shocked American society. Westman had changed his name from Robert to Robin in 2020, at age 17, following a petition to the Dakota County court. In his statement at the time, he said he “identifies as a woman and wants his name to reflect this identity.” However, five years later, his personal diary reveals he had distanced himself from this choice, writing: “I know I’m not a woman, but I don’t feel like a man either.”
The tragedy takes on an even more tragic dimension, as Westman’s mother worked at the specific Catholic school that he chose to attack. On Wednesday morning, while students were attending mass, the 23-year-old burst in armed and began shooting indiscriminately. Two children were killed instantly, while the injured were rushed to area hospitals.
Minnesota shocked
Images circulated from the shooter’s YouTube account show his weapon magazines, on which he had written phrases like “I’m the Woker, Baby Why So Queerious?” as well as “Я террорист” (“I am a terrorist” in Russian).
The mayor of Minneapolis, in a press conference, expressed his grief for the victims and the need for “serious dialogue on gender identity and mental health issues, without them becoming tools of political confrontation.”
Former First Lady Melania Trump, in her statement, characterized the attack as “senseless and horrific” and called for “preventive interventions” to identify individuals showing such extreme signs of psychological instability early on. Meanwhile, educational and parent organizations in Minnesota called for stricter security measures in schools, emphasizing that “no student should be in danger during class time or prayer.”
