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The award-winning journalist and author behind Generation Kill, Evan Wright, has died aged 59.
His wife confirmed the news to Rolling Stone on Monday (15 July). The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed the writer’s cause of death as suicide.
Wright was best known for his work on subcultures and achieved widespread recognition for his 2004 book, Generation Kill.
The book, based on his time as an embedded reporter in the US Marines during the invasion of Iraq in 2003, was adapted into a successful HBO series. It highlighted the disordered nature of US military action during what was termed the “War on Terror”, in which hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed, according to conservative estimates.
Born in Ohio in 1964 to parents who were lawyers, Wright was sent to the Seed Clinic, a home for juvenile delinquents when he was 13 . The stay came after his mother suffered a breakdown when her best friend and her husband were murdered by her son.
He documented his time at the Seed in HBO Max documentary Teen Torture, Inc, released earlier this year. The disciplinary techniques used by the institution drew comparisons to those used in North Korea during the Korean war. It was shut down in 2001 after a Senate report revealed it used sleep deprivation, threats of physical violence, public humiliation and constant surveillance as a means of controlling children.
Wright supported the testimony of Paris Hilton at the US House of Representatives Committee when she discussed her experience at similar youth facilities during her childhood.
“Whenever I see victims of these programs speak out, I always think, ‘That’s my brother or sister,’” he wrote on X the day before he died.
“I feel a bond with anyone who went through this. Then I saw Paris Hilton’s testimony and I realised, ‘Oh, shit she’s my sister, too?’ But yes, it’s a big, messed up family of us.”
During his journalism career, Wright wrote for Vanity Fair, Rolling Stone, Time on the topic of subcultures, and was the chief pornographic reviewer for Hustler magazine during the early part of his career.
Shortly before his death, he posted a chapter outline of a book based on his time at Seed.
“Here’s a fun fact for anyone who sees Teen Torture, Inc this week on Max,” he wrote in the post dated 10 July. “The main story I tell is excerpted from a book that I started writing on 17 January 1982. I wrote my outline in my sketchbook because up until this night I’d planned to be a cartoonist or photographer.
“I decided to become a professional writer on this night to tell my story & I’ve been working on this book ever since. It’s been a monster job.”
If you are experiencing feelings of distress, or are struggling to cope, you can speak to the Samaritans, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call the National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you.
