A transgender teenager with cerebral palsy who went viral after posting about his breast removal surgery has told DailyMail.com he knew what he was doing and is happy with his choices.
Micah LeRoy, 19, a student at the University of Minnesota, underwent a double mastectomy last month and shared images of the procedure and his painful but quick recovery on Instagram.
Those videos exploded on conservative social media on Thursday, with critics calling Micah a victim who should not have been given the green light for gender reassignment because of his disability.
But speaking to DailyMail.com, Micah said he has a long history of gender identity issues and is glad he provoked a backlash for wanting to “blow up the internet.”
Micah’s case raises difficult questions about whether disabled people and minors should be allowed to use puberty blockers or cross-sex hormones and undergo gender reassignment surgery.
Micah’s disability, cerebral palsy, affects movement and muscle control. He can speak and write for himself, is honest at university and is involved in state politics.
“I make these decisions,” Micah said.
‘I am my own legal guardian. And people don’t understand that.’
“People with disabilities can do whatever they want,” said Micah LeRoy, 19

The University of Minnesota student says he is honest and can think for himself
Micah can speak on his own, but was assisted in this interview by his mother Kathie LeRoy, who effectively translated his words.
He says he came out at age 14 during the pandemic, when his hometown of Minneapolis was roiled by protests over the police killing of George Floyd.
He says he always knew “something was going on” with his gender identity, but joining a group of mostly LGBTQ teens accelerated his decision.
This could raise concerns about Micah’s choices, as critics have warned of a “social contagion” of peer pressure causing a sharp increase in the number of trans adolescents.
He charted his transition from girl to boy on Instagram as @disabled_trans_boy, from taking cross-sex hormones at 17 to wearing chest binders.
He underwent surgery last month, which he said was painful but was “mostly back to normal” within a week.
Minnesota is a “trans refugee state,” led by Democratic Gov. Tim Walz, meaning it was easier for Micah to get taxpayer-funded gender-affirming care there than elsewhere.
His mother Kathie says both parents supported his decision to transition, calling it a “missing piece” of his identity.
He studies hard, is helped by a dozen caregivers and hopes to become the first transgender congressman with cerebral palsy in the U.S. House.
Micah’s videos went viral this week after being shared by Chris Elston, Sarah Fields and other conservative online activists.
“This is gender ideology,” Elston, better known as Billboard Chris, wrote as he showed a video showing Micah’s breast removal scars.
Online critics said that Micah was unable to decide to change gender due to his disability, and that he was coerced by others.

His mother Kathie LeRoy says both parents supported Micah’s decision to change gender

Micah says he became more interested in changing genders after joining a group of LGBTQ youth

Micah plays croquet as a girl. He says he always knew there was “something going on” with his gender identity

Chris Elston, better known as Billboard Chris, is among the activists who decried Micah’s surgery
“Doctors in this cult don’t care about disabilities,” Elston wrote.
‘On the contrary. They are transitioning a higher percentage of people with intellectual disabilities and comorbidities.”
Micah says he had to turn off his Instagram notifications because his account was “blowing up with hateful comments.”
But he says he’s glad he got a response.
“I want to blow up the internet because I want other people who are transgender and disabled to know that it’s okay,” Micah said.
“I want people to keep an open mind and not be bigots. People with disabilities can do whatever they want.’
The fierce response to Micah’s posts shows how divisive gender identity politics has become in America.
Republican politicians in the US have passed laws in recent years banning children from undergoing gender reassignment treatments, while Democrats have made it easier for them to access them.
Advocates of trans medicine say it is lifesaving for a group prone to suicide.
Procedures to remove breasts and alter genitalia help transgender people live authentically, they say.
But critics warn of a cult-like craze, with more and more transgender people coming out and undergoing risky procedures, while US medical groups are hijacked by ideologues imposing reckless standards of care.