Political commentator Mike Huckabee has come under fire for his recent joke about transgendered men “pretending” to be women in order to get to shower with other women, which many observers have called both “insensitive” and “offensive.”
Huckabee made the joke during a speech at the National Religious Broadcasters Convention this past February. The full remark was this:
For those who do not think that we are under threat, simply recognize that the fact that we are now in city after city watching ordinances say that your seven-year-olddaughter, if she goes into the restroom cannot be offended and you can’t be offended if she’s greeted there by a 42-year-old man who feels more like a woman than he does a man….Now I wish that someone told me that when I was in high school that I could have felt like a woman when it came time to take showers in PE. I’m pretty sure that I would have found my feminine side and said, ‘Coach, I think I’d rather shower with the girls today.’ You’re laughing because it sounds so ridiculous, doesn’t it?
The remarks went viral last week, after audio of the speech found its way to YouTube. Criticism of Huckabee has come from a number of different corners–both prominent transgender advocates and Republicans are calling on Huckabee to apologize.
Former New York Governor George Pataki, who has announced his 2016 presidential campaign, called for a broader understanding: “I think the more important point,” said Pataki, “is we should give people their dignity and let them make their own decisions. If someone chooses a path that’s different than mine, we should respect it as opposed to mocking it or in any way trying to prevent that.”
Additionally, conservative columnist Kirsten Powers said in a pointed tweet that Huckabee should apologize:
I really hope Mike Huckabee apologizes for mocking transgender people. They deserve respect: http://t.co/W9vu7FLEUo via @MeganApper
— Kirsten Powers (@KirstenPowers) June 3, 2015
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And perhaps the sharpest criticism of Huckabee came from Comedy Central’s Larry Whilmore, who dedicated an entire segment of The Nightly Show to the pointed rebuke above.
What do you think? Should Mike Huckabee apologize?
(Photo credits: Fox; Josh Duggar; E!)
