In an exclusive interview, Vivian Jenna Wilson said her father’s recent statements, including that she is “not a girl,” inspired her to speak out: “I’m not just gonna let that slide.”

Vivian Jenna Wilson, the transgender daughter of Elon Musk, said Thursday in her first interview that he was an absent father who was cruel to her as a child for being queer and feminine.

Wilson, 20, in an exclusive interview with NBC News, responded to comments Musk made Monday about her and her transgender identity. On social media and in an interview posted online, Musk said she was “not a girl” and was figuratively “dead,” and he alleged that he had been “tricked” into authorizing trans-related medical treatment for her when she was 16.

Wilson said that Musk hadn’t been tricked and that, after initially having hesitated, he knew what he was doing when he agreed to her treatment, which required consent from her parents.

Musk’s recent statements crossed a line, she said.

“I think he was under the assumption that I wasn’t going to say anything and I would just let this go unchallenged,” Wilson said in a phone interview. “Which I’m not going to do, because if you’re going to lie about me, like, blatantly to an audience of millions, I’m not just gonna let that slide.

  • jetA
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    4 months ago

    If this story wasn’t about a billionaire narcissist it would have a different tone.

    A father has trouble accepting their child has a wildly different life path then they had anticipated, and while they still can’t accept it they did endorse medical interventions their child needed when push came to shove.

    There are some redeemable qualities displayed here, even though the father is still bitter they didn’t stand in the way.

    • Hellinabucket@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      You’re right, he didn’t stand in the way, he’s just going out in public saying horrible things about his own child, and trying to help pass laws that will kill them along with thousands of others.

      • jetA
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        4 months ago

        Kill them?

        He is a billionaire he could arrange a hit squad if that was his goal

    • jerkface@lemmy.ca
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      4 months ago

      Whatever he did when she was 16, he’s clearly making all trans people less safe when their life expectancy is already slashed by the social stigma they face.

    • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      and while they still can’t accept it

      He’s had four years to come around and he hasn’t yet. Because he’s a bigot. There is nothing redeemable here. He didn’t endorse the gender-affirming care, he signed the papers to get her to go away.

      But more importantly, he is insulting his daughter and lying about her on an international platform.

      There is no scenario where this is an acceptable way to talk about your child. Not to Jordan Peterson on Twitter and also not to your next-door neighbor.

    • NineMileTower@lemmy.world
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      4 months ago

      This is a stupid take. Good fathers understand that their children’s happiness is the only path that matters. Elon Musk is a piece of shit.

      • jetA
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        4 months ago

        I’m not saying he is a “good” father, but I like to look for the good in people. And while he may be a piece of s***, he is a piece of s*** who did the right thing when called upon when it actually mattered.

        • qarbone@lemmy.world
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          4 months ago

          He did it once. He did a good thing for his flesh-and-blood child ONE TIME. And regretted it so hard, he started pushing far-right values and amplifying fascist dialogue to counteract it for everyone else’s families.

          “I like to look for the good in people.” You’re not looking for good, you’re exacavating it from beneath years and hundreds of anecdotes to the contrary.