HECKLED: Matt Walsh’s anti-transgender speech doesn’t go as planned
Right-wing media provocateur Matt Walsh spoke at the New Mexico State University campus on Tuesday evening in what amounted to little more than a transphobic diatribe complete with false narratives and stereotypical tropes.
Pro-LGBTQ protesters gathered outside the Corbett Student Union for several hours chanting, “Protect trans youth!”
Walsh made unsubstantiated claims that members of the transgender community equate anti-trans persecution to the Holocaust, a “Holocaust of hurt feelings,” according to the conservative show host.
“The individual trans person is the greatest threat to himself,” Walsh told the audience before being interrupted by a member of the crowd who disagreed with his statement.
“If you could shut the hell up for a second, and let me finish my thought,” Walsh responded.
While the event itself was relatively peaceful, several attendees were escorted out of the venue by security for yelling “F*ck you!” to the controversial speaker.
For nearly an hour, Walsh ran roughshod over facts to push his transphobic agenda and rhetoric, dismissing high suicide rates among transgender individuals as emotional blackmail.
“This is what they do,” Walsh said.
“When they use the term genocide, what they really mean is ‘If you hurt my feelings, I will kill myself, and it’ll be your fault.’ This has proven to be a very effective tactic – but it shouldn’t be.”
Walsh isn’t known for his subtlety, and the far-right provocateur got a dose of his own medicine while speaking at NMSU on Tuesday.
As protesters gathered to make their feelings known, and despite using his bully pulpit to push anti-trans propaganda some in the audience weren’t having it.
Walsh failed to answer simple questions about his unsubstantiated claims that the transgender community is somehow inherently miserable.
The conservative YouTube host posted clips of an interaction he had with a local transgender EMT, in an attempt to shore up his unproven points but for those in attendance, the engagement went the opposite.
“Where is this supposed epidemic of people regretting their transitions,” the young woman asked.
“I have treated more transgender people than I can count, who tell me that the support of their lives makes a difference in their lives – mine as well.”
Having responded to over 1500 calls in her medical career, she would know.
Instead, Walsh stumbled. “Just ask them,” he responded.
“I talk to them all the time,” Walsh said. “I know they’re out there, I know they exist.”
Anti-LGBTQ hate is very real, as evidenced daily by reports of anti-transgender bullying and hate that have become all too commonplace, something Walsh dismisses as a reason for high rates of suicide within the community.
“Trans people in modern America are among the most privileged human beings to have ever walked the face of this earth. They are relentlessly celebrated by our major institutions. They are affirmed, applauded, worshipped practically every major corporation – every major agency,” Walsh said.
After opening up the floor for questions, Walsh was caught off guard when confronted by trans members of the audience who questioned the speaker’s one-sided and negative approach when talking about gender-affirming care — leaving out the positive effects on mental health.
While Walsh had supporters in the crowd, those opposed to his bigoted views showed up as well.
The majority of protesters were relegated to outside the venue but some managed to get in.
When another young woman asked Walsh about those in the transgender community who have been helped by gender-affirming treatment, he again deflected and told the woman that she was wrong.
“What evidence do you have about that remarkable claim?” Walsh asked. “The evidence is the encounters with patients who have had these procedures done,” she responded.
“What do you have to say for the happy trans community who has benefited from these procedures, that’s my question,” she asked. “It’s a faulty question from the start,” Walsh responded.
The Q&A was shut down after just a handful of commenters — with only two speakers agreeing with Walsh’s point of view.
A progressive school with an inclusive campus and thriving LGBTQ community, NMSU perhaps wasn’t the best choice for Walsh to push his brand of anti-transgender hate.
Refusing to be silenced, students from all walks of life showed their support for the community even after the engagement was over.
The kids will be alright.
Follow Ty Ross on Twitter @cooltxchick
