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On the most recent episode of the comedian’s HBO news show Last Week Tonight, which aired Sunday, the comedian took conservative transphobes to task in a nearly half-hour long segment.
Oliver began the segment with a supercut of conservatives making the only joke they have used for the past several years: poking fun at pronouns. And although Oliver got his dunks in with a Dr. Seuss-themed Ted Cruz rhyme (there is truly no better way to explain it, you’ll just have to watch), he also acknowledged that the issue is “clearly more than just bad jokes.”
Oliver pointed out that over 100 anti-trans bills have been introduced in state legislatures this year alone, all “against a backdrop of violence and threats, including attacks and harassment aimed at hospitals providing gender-affirming care to youth.” But in a rare move for mainstream media, he also called out the liberals and leftists “who seem at best reluctant to engage on this issue and at worst outright hostile to it, either complaining about pronoun police or arguing that this issue will cost Democrat elections.”
What followed was a masterful takedown of the most popular anti-trans talking points, including the moral panic of trans student athletes, the idea that trans people are grooming children, the notion of “rapid onset gender dysphoria,” the “dangers” of letting kids transition, and yes, the troubling myth conservatives keep repeating that schools are placing litter boxes in schools to accommodate students who identify as animals. Piece by piece, Oliver debunked each talking point with a balance of facts and humor, highlighting just how ridiculous these arguments are.
The best example of that blend of logic and sarcasm came when Oliver called out the conservative tactic of using raunchy language to refer to innocuous behavior, like dressing in drag.
“Sure, anything can have a more lurid and sexual set of connotations if you just rename it. I'll show you,” Oliver said, proceeding to refer to rain as “sky jizz,” immersion blenders as “soup vibrators,” and spaghetti sauce as “noodle lube.”
Growing more serious, Oliver said, “But in the conservative playbook, that tactic is a really big one: linking discussion of gender identity to sexual predation and teachers grooming students.”
Although he demonstrated these talking points with clips from various transphobic politicians, Oliver also took equal care to uplift and cite trans voices, including those of Texas-based 11-year-old activist Kai Shappley, Texan athlete Mack Beggs, and even legendary trans author Julia Serano. Most importantly, rather than getting lost in the weeds of anti-trans legislation as a pure electoral strategy, Oliver took care to emphasize that these bills and laws have a real human impact.
While interviewing Arkansas’ attorney general, Stewart left “both sides”-ism behind and stuck to the facts.
“Hope and joy are crucial,” the host said at the end of the segment. “They are the fuel to power the ongoing fight for equality. And while there is a lot of fear and uncertainty right now it is worth remembering that progress, while not always linear, is always possible, because we're working toward the goal of every trans kid knowing that they are loved, valued, and indispensable.”
The Last Week Tonight segment follows a Jon Stewart interview with Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, in which the comedian confronted her about the numerous lies underscoring the state’s ban on transition-related care for youth. Much like Oliver, Stewart balanced his fact-checking with levity. As comedians, Stewart and Oliver are able to use jokes to illustrate the inherent absurdity of anti-trans rhetoric. Conservatives have already demonstrated that they don’t care about facts, so rather than attempting to debunk every last ridiculous conspiracy theory with ~ logic ~, more cis allies could stand to emulate Stewart and Oliver’s strategies.
John Oliver Shut Down Right Wing Transphobia in New Segment
John Oliver has joined the list of comedians using their platforms to debunk some of the most prominent myths about trans kids.On the most recent episode of the comedian’s HBO news show Last Week Tonight, which aired Sunday, the comedian took conservative transphobes to task in a nearly half-hour long segment.
Oliver pointed out that over 100 anti-trans bills have been introduced in state legislatures this year alone, all “against a backdrop of violence and threats, including attacks and harassment aimed at hospitals providing gender-affirming care to youth.” But in a rare move for mainstream media, he also called out the liberals and leftists “who seem at best reluctant to engage on this issue and at worst outright hostile to it, either complaining about pronoun police or arguing that this issue will cost Democrat elections.”
What followed was a masterful takedown of the most popular anti-trans talking points, including the moral panic of trans student athletes, the idea that trans people are grooming children, the notion of “rapid onset gender dysphoria,” the “dangers” of letting kids transition, and yes, the troubling myth conservatives keep repeating that schools are placing litter boxes in schools to accommodate students who identify as animals. Piece by piece, Oliver debunked each talking point with a balance of facts and humor, highlighting just how ridiculous these arguments are.
The best example of that blend of logic and sarcasm came when Oliver called out the conservative tactic of using raunchy language to refer to innocuous behavior, like dressing in drag.
“Sure, anything can have a more lurid and sexual set of connotations if you just rename it. I'll show you,” Oliver said, proceeding to refer to rain as “sky jizz,” immersion blenders as “soup vibrators,” and spaghetti sauce as “noodle lube.”
Growing more serious, Oliver said, “But in the conservative playbook, that tactic is a really big one: linking discussion of gender identity to sexual predation and teachers grooming students.”
Although he demonstrated these talking points with clips from various transphobic politicians, Oliver also took equal care to uplift and cite trans voices, including those of Texas-based 11-year-old activist Kai Shappley, Texan athlete Mack Beggs, and even legendary trans author Julia Serano. Most importantly, rather than getting lost in the weeds of anti-trans legislation as a pure electoral strategy, Oliver took care to emphasize that these bills and laws have a real human impact.
While interviewing Arkansas’ attorney general, Stewart left “both sides”-ism behind and stuck to the facts.
“Hope and joy are crucial,” the host said at the end of the segment. “They are the fuel to power the ongoing fight for equality. And while there is a lot of fear and uncertainty right now it is worth remembering that progress, while not always linear, is always possible, because we're working toward the goal of every trans kid knowing that they are loved, valued, and indispensable.”
The Last Week Tonight segment follows a Jon Stewart interview with Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge, in which the comedian confronted her about the numerous lies underscoring the state’s ban on transition-related care for youth. Much like Oliver, Stewart balanced his fact-checking with levity. As comedians, Stewart and Oliver are able to use jokes to illustrate the inherent absurdity of anti-trans rhetoric. Conservatives have already demonstrated that they don’t care about facts, so rather than attempting to debunk every last ridiculous conspiracy theory with ~ logic ~, more cis allies could stand to emulate Stewart and Oliver’s strategies.
