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Lady Gaga is silencing transphobic social media trolls. The 37-year-old pop icon wrote a lengthy public statement in response to the hateful comments that TikTok star Dylan Mulvaney received over her recent International Women’s Day photo with Gaga last week.
“It’s appalling to me that a post about [International] Women’s Day by Dylan Mulvaney and me would be met with such vitriol and hatred,” Gaga began in her Instagram statement that was shared on Monday, March 11. “When I see a newspaper reporting on hatred but calling it ‘backlash,’ I feel it is important to clarify that hatred is hatred, and this kind of hatred is violence. ‘Backlash’ would imply that people who love or respect Dylan and me didn’t like something we did. This is not backlash. This is hatred.”
The “Born This Way” hitmaker added that “it is not surprising given the immense work that it’s obvious we still have to do as a society to make room for transgender lives to be cherished and upheld by all of us.”
“I feel very protective in this moment, not only of Dylan, but of the trans community who continues to lead the way with their endless grace and inspiration in the face of constant degradation, intolerance, and physical, verbal, and mental violence,” Gaga continued. “I certainly do not speak for this community, but I have something to say. I hope all women will come together to honor us ALL for International Women’s Day, and may we do that always until THE DAY that all women are celebrated equally. That all people are celebrated equally. A day where people of all gender identities are celebrated on whichever holiday speaks to them. Because people of all gender identities and races deserve peace and dignity. May we all come together and be loving, accepting, warm, welcoming. May we all stand and honor the complexity and challenge of trans life—that we do not know, but can seek to understand and have compassion for.”
Gaga concluded her post by writing, “I love people too much to allow hatred to be referred to as ‘backlash.’ People deserve better.”
The post in question was from a photo shoot between Gaga and Dylan, which the social media star shared on March 8 in honor of International Women’s Day. Several Instagram users wrote condescending and transphobic comments under the post, with many calling Dylan “not a real woman.”