Dee Snider, the Twisted Sisters’ frontman, is being accused of transphobia after agreeing with Paul Stanley‘s tweet about trans kids.
Stanley, who is the lead singer of KISS, posted a statement on Twitter earlier this month saying, “There is a BIG difference between teaching acceptance and normalizing and even encouraging participation in a lifestyle that confuses young children into questioning their sexual identification as though some sort of game and then parents in some cases allow it.”
His statement caused a divide among his fans, with some calling out his use of makeup and high heels in his career.
One fan wrote: “This is a very disappointing take, especially from someone who wore high-heels, makeup, & teased up hair his whole career. As a young kid, your band helped teach me that I could be whatever I wanted to be. I guess it was just gimmickry after all. #thatsashame.”
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Snider retweeted the post and said,” You know what? There was a time where I “felt pretty” too. Glad my parents didn’t jump to any rash conclusions! Well said, @PaulStanleyLive.”
At the time of his retweet, Snider was preparing for an appearance at this year’s San Francisco Pride Celebration, singing “Queer Not Gonna Take It,” a riff on his band’s song, “We’re Not Gonna Take It.”
One day after he expressed support for Stanley’s statement, he was let go “after a productive, educational conversation” with San Francisco Gay Pride Parade board president Nguyen Pham.
Snider took to Facebook to express his thoughts on the situation, posting a picture of a written out letter titled, “So, I hear I’m transphobic. Really?”
“I am a proud moderate. I drive a Tesla and a Hummer. I have too many guns but strongly support intelligent gun control. I have four children yet fight for a woman’s right to choose. I am a motorcycle-riding environmentalist. I am a heterosexual who proudly support LBGTQIA+ rights. To me (and I believe to many of you) none of these things are mutually exclusive.”
“Don’t reject people who are willing to march, sing and stand with you just because we don’t perfectly see eye-to-eye. We are still your allies.”
Snider wrote towards the end of his letter that he would continue to support the Transgender community “even if they reject [him]” and will also further educate himself to be a better ally.
The Twisted Sisters singer signed off his statement by labeling himself as a “cisgender, crossdressing ally.”
In response to San Francisco Pride’s alleged “dropping” of Snider, they issued their statement saying, “We have mutually agreed to part ways, but appreciate Dee seeing this as a teachable moment and a reminder that even allies need to be educated to ensure that they are not casually promoting transphobia. To all our allies — we want to call you in — not call you out.”
