My son is dead, says Elon Musk, pledges to kill 'woke mind virus'

Musk told DW interviewer, Dr Jordan Peterson, that he was tricked into giving consent to go on 'puberty blockers' for his son Xavier, who now goes by Vivian Jenna Wilson

Elon Musk, the founder of SpaceX and Tesla, recently appeared in an interview with DW where he could be seen criticising the use of puberty blockers that he asserted were ‘sterilisation drugs.’ Puberty blocker is a medicine used to prevent puberty and it functions by stopping the estrogen and testosterone production, the hormones leading your body to undergo puberty-related changes. 

The X CEO said that his experience with his child Xavier, who was called Vivian Jenna Wilson, opened his eyes to the 'woke mind virus'. Jordan Peterson, the interviewer, also seemed to agree and called it 'evil'. Musk also told Peterson that he was essentially tricked into signing documents for one of my older boys, Xavier. 

"This was before I had any understanding of what was going on. COVID was going on, so there was a lot of confusion and I was told Xavier might commit suicide if he doesn't," Musk added. 

The process is done to children under the age of consent and emphasised that people who promote this should go to prison. Musk said he lost his son as he was tricked into doing this. He said they call it 'deadnaming' for a reason because your son is dead. 

The act of referring to a transgender or a non-binary person by a name they used before transitioning is called ‘Deadnaming.’ Musk believes that it is harmful to transgender and it leads to harassment and discrimination. "I vowed to destroy the woke mind virus after that," Musk added of his child transitioning. 

Vivian Musk came out as transgender in June 2022 at the age of 18. She also filed a request to change her name from Xavier to Vivian and take her mother's last name, saying that she no longer wanted to be "related to my biological father in any way, shape or form," according to Fox News. Vivian, who is now Vivian Jenna Wilson, was born to Justine Wilson, a Canadian author who divorced Musk in 2008.

What is the 'woke mind virus'?

The literal meaning of 'woke mind virus' remains ambiguous. It is generally perceived as "overly progressive" or "woke" practices that ‘negatively’ influence society and media. This is not the first time Musk criticised the "woke mind virus", earlier in 2021, he called it one of the greatest threats to modern civilisation. 

Musk purchased Twitter in 2022, he hinted that the virus prompted him to buy the social media platform and promised to restore free speech on the platform, he increased his conservative political commentary since the purchase. He criticised 'woke practices' including gender-affirming care, referring to a range of services for transgender and non-binary people helping them to navigate their gender identity.