Don’t Bother Liking Anyone
Thoughts on the Roisin Murphy thing
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It was pretty disappointing to read yesterday that the ex-Moloko singer and really talented solo artist Roisin Murphy decided to weigh in on THE TRANS DEBATE™. Although it hasn’t been 100% confirmed, there is a comment circulating, apparently by her, which is a reply to a post about Graham Linehan which reads:
“Please don’t call me a terf, please don’t keep using that word against women [prayer hands emoji x 3] I beg you! but puberty blockers ARE FUCKED, absolutely desolate, big Pharma laughing all the way to the bank. Little mixed up kids are vulnerable and need to be protected, that’s just true”
If this really is Roisin, then I’m really disappointed. I’m a big fan of her music. I expressed my disappointment online, and as is to be expected - I got tonnes of terfs (oops, sorry Roisin - I mean adult human female witch advocates) calling me a fascist for trying to suppress the opinions of women and being pro-child mutilation, despite merely expressing my, ultimately harmless, disappointment at an artist I like being thick as shit. Because, at the end of the day - isn’t that all it is? Calling someone out, or expressing that you’re frustrated is hardly a cancellation.
If anything, it clearly demonstrates the cavernous disconnect there seems to be between these uniformed celebrity voices, and those who actually have any sort of stake in the situation. Roisin Murphy may well be an extremely talented singer and songwriter, but she absolutely knows fuck all about trans issues. It’s nothing new, musicians seem to be piping up all the time with their views on the trans community. In the past couple of days, we’ve also had Carlos Santana & Alice Cooper make ill-informed comments about trans people - except with Roisin it’s different, because her music isn’t shitty.
Trans people can no longer risk committing to liking an artist. There is always that looming risk now, that at some point they’re going to admit that they think “trans people are a bit weird”. It’s exhausting. We’re better off just being ambivalent, until we know otherwise. That’s why I’m so keen on those who do support us expressing their support, unapologetically. Being trans-inclusive is absolutely not something that goes without saying these days.
It’s clear from Murphy’s alleged comment that she doesn’t view trans people as legitimate. The subtle insinuation that “women” are a separate class from “trans women” is common and frustrating. The idea that the word “terf” is simply used against women is a ridiculous oversimplification that only shows how new to the discourse people Roisin (supposedly) are. They read a few articles, think they know what’s going on, and then weigh in with all of their privilege and biases behind them. Not only can a man be a terf, a lot of these reactionary cyber-slugs are.
What does Roisin know about puberty blockers? Does she have a trans child? Does she have a medical degree? Does she know the statistics of child transition? A trans person daring to ask these follow up questions is labeled a fascist. A suppressor of free speech. Maybe Roisin has done the reading and knows all the facts and just doesn’t agree with your clown-world gender woo woo! Yeah, maybe. But statistically, she’s probably just a fucking idiot.
That’s the thing - as a trans person, I’ve seen this all before. A public person, you otherwise admire, totally ruins their reputation by being transphobic. These days, I feel like I’m seeing it every week. Because it’s something I’m so used to, and so sick of, I now take a pretty hard line on it. If a public figure has no interest in doing a bit of pretty fucking basic research before alienating a large part of their fanbase with transphobia, I have no time for it. I’ll be disappointed, and maybe I’ll write a short blog about it, but then I’ll move on. No “cancellation”. God knows, I don’t have that power. I’m just not going to support that artist anymore. If you don’t have time for me, I don’t have time for you. It really is as simple as that.
Trans people absolutely deserve better “queer icons” than this. If they’re going to perpetually “other” us, and demonize us as child groomers or shills for “Big Pharma” then they aren’t getting my support. That’s just true.