TDoR 2025 / 2024 / October / 28 / Serenity Birdsong


Serenity Birdsong

Age 21

28 Oct 2024
Murfreesboro, Tennessee (USA)
Suicide

Serenity Birdsong
Serenity Birdsong [photo: www.lgbtqnation.com]

Serenity died by suicide inside the library of her university. She was the vice president of MTSU’s student LGBTQ+ organization MT Lambda.

Serenity Birdsong, a transgender student at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), killed themselves on Monday inside the campus’ James E. Walker Library. Birdsong was vice president of MTSU’s student LGBTQ+ organization MT Lambda.

The school canceled classes and closed the library on Tuesday but resumed normal operations on Wednesday. Additional details about Birdsong’s suicide have neither been made publicly available nor reported by the media.

“Serenity was more than an officer to us; many of us considered Serenity our friend, and her ability to light up a room, paired with her wholesome demeanor, made her welcome anywhere, but especially in Lambda where we are burdened by the darkness of existing in a world so often cruel to us. And it is this darkness that snuffed out Serenity’s light,” MT Lambda wrote in a Tuesday afternoon Instagram post marking Birdsong’s suicide.

The group had planned on hosting a Halloween party on Wednesday but instead will host a discussion and grieving space for people in memory of Birdsong. Additionally, the Student Government Association will hold a vigil on Wednesday at 6 p.m. local time in front of the campus library. The MTSU campus publication has also highlighted the availability of counseling services for students.

MT Lambda’s post memorializing Birdsong included a poem written by her. An extract from the poem is reproduced below:

 “The trouble of life both big and small
  seem to fade as the obstacles falls.
  Now we embark on a new adventure
  one with which we may joke and gesture.

  But all in all, that which I hope most
  is that I spend time with those I love, before I’m a ghost.”

https://www.soapcentral.com/human-interest/news-what-happened-serenity-birdsong-gofundme-raises-16-900-mtsu-student-death

https://www.newschannel5.com/news/mtsu-gathers-for-vigil-in-memory-of-student-highlights-mental-health-resources

https://elclosetlgbt.com/closetnews/mujer-trans-joven-muere-por-suicido-en-su-propia-escuela/

https://www.wsmv.com/2024/10/31/student-witness-mtsu-library-suicide-speaks-out-before-campus-vigil/

https://www.lgbtqnation.com/2024/10/trans-student-leader-kills-self-in-campus-library/

https://eu.dnj.com/picture-gallery/news/local/2024/10/31/mtsu-vigil-held-to-remember-a-recent-student-who-died-by-suicide-murfreesboro-transgender-trans/75948268007/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WdSlU2cg3Xw

Report added: 1 Nov 2024. Last updated: 9 Nov 2024

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