Recently, the BBC released a 30-minute documentary on Eden Knight, a Saudi trans woman who took her own life after being forced to detransition by her family in 2023. It was honestly one of the more painful documentaries I watched this year given the subject matter. I wanted to avoid seeing it, but I knew I needed to experience this, and that Eden deserves to have her story told.
The documentary favors a personal focus on Eden: viewers get to hear what she was like from those closest to her. Knight’s community described her as confident, caring, smart, and someone who you’d want as a friend.
“Eden was tiny in stature and large in personality, beautiful strong features, and just like an absolute little firecracker of a person,” said Heather, one of Eden’s closest friends.
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During this part of the documentary, we’re shown a video of her playing pool and having a good time, a very bittersweet moment that shows how she lit up a room.
The documentary does a good job shedding light on some of the mystery surrounding her death and the people involved, focusing largely on the dentity of the lawyer who emotionally and financially manipulated her into detransitioning. We get a glimpse of Eden as a person, and also a heartbreaking story about the ways in which families often work against the best interests of their queer and trans members.
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Eden Knight deserved to live, and to thrive.
By the end, it’s hard not to get emotional especially after a U.S. Immigration expert tells us that had Eden applied for asylum in the states, she would’ve had a 99% chance of approval. Hearing that line felt like a knife being twisted in my stomach. Eden was so close to living a free life as an out trans person, and she was denied that.
One of Eden’s closest friends Hayden puts it best, stating: “She’s a person, there is a lot more there than just a trans person. She was my sister, she was my son’s aunt, and she was my friend.”
As much as this whole experience hurt me, I’m glad that I watched the documentary. In the wake of an aggressive political agenda against not just trans people but migrants seeking a safer, freer life, we need to keep her memory alive.
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