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Headline Roundup August 28th, 2025

MN Catholic School Shooting Sparks Debate on Suspect's Alleged Trans Identity

Summary from the AllSides News Team

The shooting at a Minneapolis Catholic school on Wednesday is sparking a national debate surrounding the alleged transgender identity of the suspect.

Trans Lunatic Playing Out Demonic Fantasies: “Demons have taken hold of Minneapolis,” according to American Spectator (Right bias) opinion writer Scott McKay, who said the “atrocity” in Minneapolis is “hardly surprising” considering Gov. Tim Walz declared the state a "sanctuary" for trans kids, or, McKay posited, “a sanctuary for deranged parents intent on sterilizing their children” and “mutilating them with sex-change surgeries.” McKay continued, “It doesn’t require a devotee of transgender ideology to make a mass shooter,” explaining that they come from “several different strains of psychopathy.” 

Sick Victory Lap Over ‘Trans’ Shooter: According to the Daily Beast (Left), “a series of MAGA names linked the murder to gender politics” in what it is calling “a sick victory lap.” The article called out Matt Walsh (Right), who said the trans “agenda is losing” and “now is precisely the moment when trans militants are the MOST dangerous.” Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA), who said the shooter “was likely groomed and transitioned as a teenager,” was also criticized. LGBTQ Nation (Left) highlighted many “right wingers” who are “blaming trans identity for the tragedy,” while also saying trans people "will likely fear a backlash” over these allegations.

A Look At The Data: Newsweek (Center) cited a “national debate” around the shooter's identity, noting that the shooting “prompted some conservatives to allege a ‘pattern’ when it comes to transgender individuals and violence.” The data, according to Newsweek, shows “mass shootings by transgender individuals are rare and the vast majority of perpetrators are cisgender men.” It included commentary from the director of a gun violence research lab who said there is “no way for us to quantify” shootings by transgender individuals because “this is not information that is collected in crime statistics.” There are multiple “school shooting trackers” that have very different methodologies for counting the number of shootings, fueling misinformation on the issue.

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Featured Coverage of this Story

From the Center
Robin Westman is Latest Transgender Mass Shooter to Spark National Debate
Robin Westman is Latest Transgender Mass Shooter to Spark National Debate

Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

Analysis

The suspect in the mass shooting at a Catholic Church and school in Minneapolis has become the latest U.S. mass shooter to spark a debate because they are apparently transgender, but experts say such perpetrators are "extremely" rare.

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From the Left
MAGA Takes Sick Victory Lap Over ‘Trans’ Minneapolis Shooter
Analysis

MAGA has seized on reports that the 23-year-old who opened fire on children as they prayed inside a Minneapolis Catholic school is transgender.

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From the Right
The Demons Have Taken Hold of Minneapolis
Opinion

On Wednesday morning, the students at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis were attending a Mass in the church next to the school when, suddenly, the stained-glass windows were shattered by a hail of gunfire.

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