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Elon Musk’s daughter Vivian granted name and gender change

‘I no longer live with or wish to be related to my biological father in any way, shape or form,’ daughter says in court filing

Gustaf Kilander
Washington, DC
,Johanna Chisholm
Thursday 23 June 2022 17:05 BST
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Related video: Elon Musk’s daughter changes name to cut ties with father

Elon Musk’s daughter has been granted the name and gender change that she requested.

Court documents state that a Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge confirmed the name change for Vivian Jenna Wilson, 18, according to TMZ. Wilson is the maiden name of her mother.

Ms Wilson was also granted a gender change as she identifies as female. The court documents say that a new birth certificate will shortly be issued by the state registrar.

Mr Musk’s ex-wife has said that she’s “proud” of their child for making the move to sever all ties with their biological father.

Formerly known as Xavier Alexander Musk, Ms Wilson is the daughter of the business tycoon and his first wife Justine Wilson, who was married to the Tesla founder from 2000 until 2008.

The daughter, who recently turned 18, identifies as a trans woman and in an April court filing with the Los Angeles County Superior court, she filed a request to have her name reflect her new gender identity and to sever all ties with her biological father.

“I no longer live with or wish to be related to my biological father in any way, shape or form,” the paperwork filed in Santa Monica read.

Mr Musk’s ex-wife took to Twitter on Monday night in what appeared to be in response to her daughter’s decision to sever ties with her famous father.

“I had a weird childhood,’ my 18 year old said to me,” Ms Wilson, a Canadian author, tweeted. “I can’t believe I’m as normal-seeming as I am,” she added in the tweet, mirroring a conversation Ms Wilson had apparently had with her 18-year-old.

“I said, ‘I’m very proud of you.‘” Justine Wilson tweeted, before adding that their daughter, who filed the petition to take her mother’s maiden name and officially be called Vivian Jenna Wilson, responded by saying: “I’m proud of myself!”.

A further explanation of the rift between Mr Musk and his daughter has not emerged yet.

Neither a lawyer who represents Ms Musk nor the Tesla media office has responded to the petition or released any statement on the move.

The child’s decision to sever ties with the SpaceX founder comes at a time when the tech billionaire has signalled that he’s prepared to cross party lines and back Republican politicians for office, some of whom have endorsed legislation attempting to limit the rights of the transgender community in several US states.

Earlier this month, the richest person on the planet tweeted that he could conceivably see himself throwing his support behind Florida’s Republican Governor Ron DeSantis if he makes a bid for the presidency in 2024.

Mr DeSantis has come under intense scrutiny from the LGBT+ community, as they argue his recent “Parental Rights in Education” law, which critics referred to as the “Don’t Say Gay” bill, seeks to marginalise vulnerable groups as it prohibits instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in kindergarten through third grade.

The tech titan has also come under fire for tweeting his controversial takes on preferred pronouns, saying in 2020 that they’re “an aesthetic nightmare”.

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