You'd think Bette Midler and Macy Gray were working on a new project with J.K. Rowling, but they're spewing deeply transphobic remarks for free.
Midler, a legendary actress also known for many years for supporting gay rights, has now changed her tune when it comes to trans people.
The Hocus Pocus and The First Wives Club actress wrote on Twitter:
"WOMEN OF THE WORLD! We are being stripped of our rights over our bodies, our lives and even of our name! They don't call us 'women' anymore; they call us 'birthing people' or 'menstruators,' and even 'people with vaginas'! Don't let them erase you! Every human on earth owes you!"
To be clear, this kind of wording (in the abortion discourse or otherwise) has never - ever - been an attempt to erase women from existence, which would be a really weird and nonsensical effort from the LGBTQ+ community if it turned out to be true.
The language surrounding "birthing people" and "menstruators" aims to include transgender men and non-binary people who do not identify as women but who might have to have to deal with menstruating and the possibility of getting pregnant. Unlike Midler's tweet suggests, these terms have never excluded women or their rights - they simply included other people with similar biological needs who do not identify as women.
On the very same day, R&B singer Macy Gray did an interview with Piers Morgan where she disclosed how she really feels about transgender people. After defining a woman as a "human being with boobs," Gray went on to complain about preferred pronouns and dismiss transgender people.
Morgan argued that he supports transgender rights but feels like trans people shouldn't be allowed to compete in sports according to their gender - a bizarre argument that literally contradicts itself. "Me too," Gray agreed. She added:
"As a woman, just because you go change your parts, doesn't make you a woman. Sorry. I know that for a fact. If you want me to call you a 'her,' then I will, because that's what you want. But that doesn't make you a woman."
There's no denying that American women currently feel under attack by the overturning of Roe v. Wade and other political efforts that aim to strip them away from having agency and power in their lives. While that fact can and should be acknowledged, the LGBTQ+ community is not behind these horrific moves that disrespect women and their choices. Quite the contrary.
Midler's and Gray's transphobic statements are not only abhorrent and harmful to the LGBTQ+ community, but they're also completely gratuitous and pointless. Again, inclusive language is being adopted to include trans and non-binary people who deal with menstruation and the possibility of getting pregnant. These people are not "stripping women's rights over their bodies," as Midler suggested. They are also not just "changing their parts," as Gray suggested.
Midler always presented herself as a progressive who believes in gay rights, but it appears that she has a very different and problematic set of feelings when it comes to transgender people. Gray has been mostly out of the limelight for a few years, so coming out with a statement like this prompts her to make headlines for all of the wrong reasons.
Overall, the LGBTQ+ community could've done without these celebrities' repulsive statements about trans individuals.
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