Ne-Yo apologizes for transphobic comments and doubles down on her criticism

Hours after apologizing for his transphobic comments about upbringing and gender identity, Ne-Yo has retracted his apology and doubled down on his original comments.

On Sunday night, the “So Sick” singer issued a remorseful statement via email X (formerly Twitter) after saying he would not support a child who does not identify with the gender they were assigned at birth. On Monday morning, he shared an Instagram video in which he reversed the mea culpa and insisted he was entitled to his opinion.

“I want you all to hear this from the horse’s mouth, not the publicist’s computer,” Ne-Yo says in the clip, which has since been deleted.

“I make no apologies for having an opinion on this matter. I’m a 43 year old straight male raising five boys and two girls okay? This is my reality. If my opinion has offended anyone then of course I apologize for offending you as that was not my intention. … However, I have the right to feel how I feel. …You have the right to feel how you feel. I don’t ask anyone to follow me. I am not asking anyone to agree with me.”

The Grammy winner withdrew his apology days after appearing on “The Gloria Velez Podcast.” During the podcast episode, he and Velez disagreed with the idea of ​​supporting a transgender child’s identity and allowing them to seek gender-based care.

“When your little boy comes up to you and says, ‘Dad, I want to be a girl’ … do you just let him rock that?” Ne-Yo said on the podcast. “If you let this 5-year-old boy decide to eat sweets all day, he will. When was it a good idea to let a 5-year-old, 6-year-old, or 12-year-old make a life-changing decision for themselves?

“He can’t drive yet, but he can choose his gender?” he added.

Later in their conversation, Ne-Yo Velez recounted that someone once advised him to “ask your son, ‘What is a girl?’” when “your little boy comes up to you and says, ‘Dad, I want a girl be.'” ‘

“Maybe he wants to play with dolls,” Ne-Yo said. “Fine, play with dolls. But you’re a boy playing with dolls. Do you want to wear pink? Cool, wear pink. But you’re a boy who wears pink.”

After being criticized for his comments on the Gloria Velez Podcast, Ne-Yo released a statement on social media saying he “deeply apologizes” to everyone he “may have hurt.” The statement referred to the musician as a long-time “defender of love and inclusion in the LGBTQI+ community.”

“I understand that my comments could be interpreted as insensitive and offensive,” the statement said.

“Gender identity is nuanced and I can honestly say I plan to do more research on the subject so I can approach future conversations with more empathy. At the end of the day, I lead with love and support freedom of expression and the pursuit of happiness for all.”

In his follow-up video, Ne-Yo still vowed to educate himself “a little bit more about the subject,” but doubted that “any book…or any opinion” could convince him “to agree to a kid doing anything.” to let.” Such a decision.”

“If any of my seven children decided they wanted to be something other than who they were born, once they were old and mature enough to make that decision… so be it. I won’t love her any less,” the She Knows artist wrote in the video’s caption.

“But that’s not a discussion until they’re mentally mature enough to have a discussion like that. Period. Clearly.”

Advocates say that gender-sensitive care is critical to the well-being of trans youth and that restricting access to this care is harmful to young people. Gender-affirming care interventions can include mental health care, social services, and medical care such as hormone therapy human rights campaign. According to the World Professional Assn. For Transgender Health, studies suggest that gender-affirming treatments can improve psychological well-being and reduce suicidal behaviors in young people.

In addition, the Trans Youth Project – which bills itself as the first large-scale longitudinal study of American transgender children – found that transgender children who make social transitions with the support of their families have, on average, less anxiety and depression than trans children, who live without such support.