James Charles found himself at the center of yet another controversy after a questionable discussion he held on his YouTube channel with his fellow influencer Jeff Wittek. What started off as a seemingly casual "I Had My Crush Do My Makeup" challenge turned into a deeper conversation about gender and sexuality.Ā
Unfortunately, many people ended up feeling hurt and put off by statements Charles made about how he understands his attraction to transgender men and what it implies about their value.
James Charles' discussion about how he understands his sexuality and that of others got pretty complex.
"In science, in regards to LGBTQ people, there's what's called the Kinsey Scale," Charles explained. "The Kinsey Scale is from zero to six ā zero being completely straight and six being completely gay. And I truly believe the amount of people that are a flat-out zero or a flat-out six is like very, very small. I think that most people are very close to the end, but there's a huge percentage in the middle too. If I had to put myself on it, I would put myself at like a 5.5."
His answer to the question about whether or not he is "full gay" is what seems to have bothered people the most.
"So you're not even full gay?" Wittek asked Charles.Ā
"I mean, no," Charles responded. "There have been girls in the past who I thought were really, really beautiful. There's also been like trans guys in the past, too, who I was like really, really into for a moment in time. Especially living in LA where everybody is a lot more openminded. I think that honestly [the] majority of guys are wanting to experiment."
Lots of transgender men and women were offended by Charles' statements.
"As a gay trans man who has been turned away by gay men (not even romantically or sexually) for not being 'male enough,' I can full-heartedly state that James Charles's statement is, in fact, transphobic as all f***," one person shared on Twitter.
People continuously expressed their outrage but also their disappointment.
"What saddens me the most is the amount of trans people who looked up to James Charles and had to listen to that…," a person wrote.Ā
His words seemed to hit people even harder since he is actually part of the LGBTQ+ community and should understand the continuous oppression and invalidation they experience on a daily basis.
They also took the time to educate others about exactly what made Charles' statements hurtful.
"With everything that James Charles said, hereās a friendly reminder that itās transphobic to say someoneās sexuality changes if theyāre attracted to a trans person because youāre implying trans men arenāt actually men or trans women arenāt actually women. Thanks."Ā
Are you following?
Another critic simplified the concept even more.
"I'm sad [right now] so I canāt say much intellectual sh** but James Charles said something truly idiotic. Trans men are men and trans women are women. Gay men being attracted to a trans man doesnāt make them less/not gay. You like men. Trans men are men. It very clearly makes sense."
James Charles delivered an apology for his comments about transgender people and sexuality on Twitter.
"In [an] attempt to explain the very complex concept of sexuality (& mine) in my vid today, I unintentionally implied that my trans brothers & sisters aren't valid," he wrote. "This is NOT what I was trying to say. You are valid in your identity!! I apologize & shouldāve chosen my words wiser!"
Some critics aren't buying his apology at all.
"James Charles: I don't think I'm 100% gay bc I've been attracted to trans men. James Charles after receiving backlash: I need to word things wiser. I wasn't trying to invalidate trans people," one person wrote.
"Like I'm confused as to how that is just a poor choice of words. What was he actually trying to say in the video if not that?" the person continued.
"And if he truly did mean something else, [then] why didn't he say what he really meant in his apology tweet. Like he said what he said in that vid. I don't see another way it could be interpreted… A headache literally a Headache."
They are also irritated by cisgender people who accepted James Charles' apology.
"F*** James Charles and any cis person accepting his apology on behalf of trans people as if the apology was even for you," one critic wrote. "If you donāt identify as transgender then you donāt get to decide how trans people should feel, behave, or which apologies they should or shouldn't accept."
Some trans people felt less strongly about James Charles statements, although they still felt what he said was wrong.
"Am I the only trans guy who doesnāt give a shit about what James Charles said? Like… he worded it wrong, but we canāt expect everybody whoās not that educated on trans people to get it right every time. Just correct him and move on. Heās apologised."
Let's all just use this situation as a learning experience.
Charles seemingly factored his attraction to trans men into his reasoning for why doesn't consider himself to be "full gay," suggesting that he doesn't see his attraction to a trans man in the same way he does his attraction to a cisgender man. Clearly, we all have to do more than just be careful with our words and apologize when we screw up statements. A lot ofĀ unlearning needs to happen when it comes to how we grapple with sexuality, gender identity, and how we value them both.
