By:  Carl Schwartzbaum

The horrifying attack on the Annunciation Catholic Church and School in Minneapolis on Wednesday, which left two children dead and 17 others wounded, has been further darkened by revelations about the inner turmoil of the assailant, Robin Westman, 23. A manifesto and journal entries released online in the hours before the massacre detail the shooter’s profound struggles with gender identity, culminating in what appears to be a tortured repudiation of a transition embarked upon as a teenager.

According to a report that appeared on Thursday in The New York Post, Westman’s writings suggest not only a descent into violence but also a psychological unraveling linked to deep dissatisfaction with his transgender identity. “I am tired of being trans,” Westman wrote, lamenting years of decisions that he described as self-inflicted brainwashing.

In the twisted handwritten journal posted on YouTube before the attack, Westman blended English words with a crude cipher using Russian Cyrillic letters. In one passage, translated by The New York Post, he wrote: “I only keep [my long hair] because it is pretty much my last shred of being trans. I am tired of being trans, I wish I never brain-washed myself.”

He added: “I can’t cut my hair now as it would be embarrassing defeat, and it might be a concerning change of character that could get me reported. It just always gets in my way. I will probably chop it on the day of the attack.”

These chilling words provide disturbing context to the violence that unfolded later that morning. As Mass was being celebrated at Annunciation Catholic School, Westman entered with a firearm and opened fire, leaving a sanctuary of prayer transformed into a crime scene of unimaginable grief.

Police have confirmed that the assault began shortly after 9 a.m., when dozens of students were gathered for the morning service. Eyewitnesses reported chaos as gunshots rang out in the church nave. Two children were killed instantly, while 17 others, primarily students, were struck by bullets or injured in the ensuing stampede.

Law enforcement officers responded within minutes, but Westman ultimately turned the gun on himself before being apprehended. Investigators later recovered the journal, along with additional materials encrypted with Cyrillic, suggesting the shooter meticulously planned the attack.

The New York Post report noted that Westman’s manifesto and writings reveal a fractured psyche—part confession, part nihilistic declaration, and part repudiation of the transgender identity he had embraced only years earlier.

Westman’s journey into gender transition began formally when he was 17. Court documents obtained by The New York Post show that he petitioned Dakota County, Minnesota, in 2019 to change his name from Robert to Robin, citing his desire to live as a female. The petition, granted in January 2020, stated explicitly that he “identifies as a female and wants her name to reflect that identification.”

But by 2025, the journal entries suggest he was living in profound regret and internal conflict. In one handwritten note, he admitted: “I don’t want to dress girly all the time but I guess sometimes I really like it. I know I am not a woman but I definitely don’t feel like a man.”

This duality—oscillating between a desire to embrace and reject aspects of transgender identity—was a recurring theme throughout his writings. According to the information provided in The New York Post report, the contradictions illustrate a tormented individual unable to reconcile his identity, ultimately externalizing his pain in violence against others.

Experts and commentators have pointed out that Westman’s writings represent more than private anguish; they provide insight into how personal disillusionment can metastasize into public acts of destruction.

While most individuals grappling with gender dysphoria or identity regret do not become violent, The New York Post report observed that Westman’s case highlights the dangers of untreated psychological instability compounded by access to firearms and extremist ideologies. His online activity, now under review by federal and local authorities, reportedly included troubling references to other mass killers and coded justifications for violence.

The decision to attack a Catholic institution—a place representing both faith and community stability—has raised questions about whether religious or cultural resentment played a role alongside Westman’s personal struggles.

The Minneapolis massacre has ignited heated debate over the intersection of transgender identity, mental health, and violence. Politicians, media commentators, and activists have seized upon Westman’s writings to support divergent narratives.

Progressive voices have warned against stigmatizing the transgender community, emphasizing that Westman’s actions represent an individual’s pathology rather than a broader indictment of trans people. Conservative commentators, however, have pointed to the shooter’s manifesto as evidence of the dangers of what they describe as “socially engineered gender ideology.”

The New York Post report noted that this latest massacre echoes earlier controversies, such as the debate following the 2023 Nashville Christian school shooting, also carried out by a transgender individual. In both cases, the attacker left behind writings linking personal gender struggles with a broader descent into violence.

While the political debates unfold, the immediate reality in Minneapolis remains one of grief. Two children are dead, their classmates and families traumatized, and a faith community left reeling. Candlelight vigils outside Annunciation Catholic Church have drawn hundreds, with local clergy urging unity and healing.

Bishop Michael Hough of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis called the attack “a desecration of sacred space and innocent life,” urging prayers not only for the victims but for “a society in which hatred, confusion, and despair too often lead to unspeakable violence.”

The New York Post reported that law enforcement officials are working closely with school leaders to provide counseling and trauma support for surviving students, many of whom witnessed the shooting firsthand.

As investigators piece together Westman’s motives, his handwritten journal and online manifesto are expected to play a central role. Analysts are still decoding portions written in Cyrillic script, though early translations confirm themes of regret, bitterness, and self-loathing tied to his gender identity.

The writings also reflect meticulous planning. The note about cutting his hair on the “day of the attack” appears to have been followed through: when police discovered his body, he had shorn much of his previously long hair. Forensic experts believe this ritual was symbolic—a final severing of his transgender identity before carrying out mass violence.

According to the report in The New York Post, the manifesto is likely to be scrutinized not only for what it reveals about Westman’s personal demons but also for what it may indicate about broader online networks encouraging or glamorizing acts of violence.

The Minneapolis Catholic school massacre is not just another tragic entry in America’s long catalog of mass shootings. It is a uniquely disturbing case in which gender identity struggles, regret over transition, and untreated mental anguish culminated in the slaughter of innocent children in a place of worship.

The shooter’s own words, preserved in his journal and disseminated online, offer a chilling glimpse into the mind of a young man at war with himself—first seduced by an ideology he came to resent, then consumed by bitterness and despair, and ultimately driven to commit mass murder.

As The New York Post report observed, the implications are far-reaching. Beyond the grief of Minneapolis and the mourning of families, this episode underscores the urgent need for serious discussions about mental health, the complexities of gender identity, and the societal conditions that allow personal anguish to metastasize into public slaughter.

In the end, Westman’s final confession—that he was “tired of being trans”—has been immortalized not as a private lament but as part of a manifesto that preceded one of the year’s most heinous acts of violence. His words will be studied by investigators, debated by politicians, and invoked by activists on both sides of the cultural divide. Yet for the families of two murdered children, those words will forever stand as the twisted preamble to a tragedy that could never be justified.