Mario Lopez Slammed for Comments on Transgender Kids: ‘It’s Sort of Alarming and There Are Repercussions Later On’
Many people are not happy with Mario Lopez after he made some controversial comments about transgender children in a new interview.
The 45-year-old appeared on The Candace Owens Show — who is very conservative — in June and discussed raising children in this day and age. “There are some weird trends and one of the weirder ones, for me, is this new trend where celebrities are coming out — I know Charlize Theron did this a few weeks ago — is saying that their child is picking the gender,” the 30-year-old host explained. “And this is strange to me, just because they say, ‘I looked at my child. My child was swimming in a bathtub and looked up and said, ‘Mommy, I’m a boy.’ That’s weird, too, because even though I am not a parent, I nannied for five years of my life and the things that come out of children’s mouths — they say whatever in the moment. I am trying to understand this new Hollywood mentality where they just think their children now have the mental authority.”
The Saved by the Bell alum revealed that he is still processing everything, too. “I am trying to understand it myself, and please don’t lump me into that whole [group],” he responded. “I’m kind of blown away too. Look, I’m never going to tell anyone how to parent their kids, obviously, and I think if you come from a place of love, you really can’t go wrong, but at the same time, my God, if you’re 3 years old and you’re saying you feel a certain way or you think you’re a boy or girl or whatever the case may be, I just think it’s dangerous as a parent to make this determination, then, well, OK, then you’re going to be a boy or girl, whatever the case may be. It’s sort of alarming, and I just think about the repercussions later on.”
He added, “When you’re a kid, at least when I was a kid, I remember thinking, some boys have cooties, you know what I mean? I don’t think — you don’t know anything about sexuality yet, you’re just a kid.”
The dad of three explained that even though a child might be feeling a certain way, parents still need to step in. “I think parents need to allow their kids to be kids, but at the same time, you gotta be the adult in the situation,” he said. “Pause with that and — I think the formative years is when you start having those discussions and really start making these declarations. I just personally think it’s way too young.”
Naturally, many fans took to Twitter to vent about the conversation. One person wrote, “Mario Lopez should mind his business and worry about his own children. Everyone is entitled to their opinions, even wrong ones. But criticizing someone’s parenting publicly crosses a line,” while another echoed, “Mario Lopez or A.C. Slater from Saved by the Bell is canceled.”
Even Queer Eye stars Jonathan Van Ness and Karamo Brown had something to say about Mario’s opinions. “If you’re not raising a child who is part of the LGBTQ+ community, you should really be quiet. You don’t need to understand what you do not know. You both need to do better. Your casual transphobia is par for the course. Christianity says leave judgment to God. @MarioLopezExtra,” Jonathan wrote.
“I’m disappointed to read @MarioLopezExtra comments about parents who support their child’s openness about their gender identity,” Karamo tweeted. “I don’t think @MarioLopezExtra should be ‘canceled.’ But I do believe he should be given the opportunity to learn why his comments are harmful to trans youth and their parents. Mario, I’m ready to talk when you are.”
Mario has since apologized for his remarks. “The comments I made were ignorant and insensitive, and I now have a deeper understanding of how hurtful they were,” he told In Touch in a statement. “I have been and always will be an ardent supporter of the LGBTQ community, and I am going to use this opportunity to better educate myself. Moving forward I will be more informed and thoughtful.”
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