Boy George branded 'transphobic' after slamming gender pronouns as 'ridiculous': 'Call me Napoleon'
Boy George, best known as the lead singer of pop band 'Culture Club', and popular for his soulful voice and androgynous appearance, has hit out at the concept of preferred gender pronouns and called it "ridiculous".
The 58-year-old, who became popular in the 1980s after recording global hits such as 'Karma Chameleon' and 'Do You Want To Hurt Me', irked social media users when he randomly tweeted, "Leave your pronouns at the door!"
In response, one user answered, "As much as I love you, that does sound quite ridiculous."
But the put down didn't bother George too much and the singer hit back with a quip of his own, writing, "You must refer to me as 'Napoleon' and that's as ridiculous as it gets! I used the ladies toilet throughout the 80s!"
Other commenters were having arguments in the comment sections, with one posting, "Just respect people’s preferred pronouns, it’s not asking for a lot and it goes a long way. It’s a decent and kind thing to do. I don’t understand having outrage about something that in no way affects you negatively."
Another similarly wrote, "What does it take to show others respect by using their preferred pronouns? I wouldn't not use your name so why would I not use your preferred pronouns? People are too quick to criticise others' lifestyles & identities. If people want attention there's usually a reason. Ask them."
"Thanks for that but I have eyes and can mostly describe what I see!" George responded, telling another user the preferred gender pronouns were just "a modern form of attention seeking."
One user who agreed with George's stance went so far as to suggest being forced into using someone's preferred gender pronouns would negatively affect the person being made to do so.
"It does affect many people negatively," they claimed. "It is compelled speech; it creates cognitive dissonance between the evidence of my eyes, my instincts and what I'm being told; it disadvantages people with LDs [learning disabilities] or those who don't have English as a first language."