Caitlyn (formerly Bruce) Jenner is a bit of a conundrum; after all, she’s a transgender Republican woman who has spoken on behalf of Donald Trump in the past. Now, however, the woman who (as E News reports) once vowed to vote for Trump over Hillary because,” if Hillary becomes President, the country is over,” and who also argued that she believed Donald Trump would be, “very good for women’s issues” is taking Trump to task over trans bathroom rights.
During the Obama administration, Caitlyn Jenner became one of the highest-profile advocates for the transgender community, despite leaning politically toward a party fighting against trans rights. She also publicly defended an Obama-era transgender bathroom decree that allowed trans students and others to use the public restroom that they identified with, regardless of the gender listed on their birth certificate.
Fast-forward to the new Trump administration. As one of his first acts as POTUS, Donald Trump has rescinded the transgender bathroom protections put in place by former President Obama. For a few days, CNN reports, Caitlyn Jenner was mum on the subject. Now, however, the Olympic gold medalist is speaking out against the policy change, calling it a “disaster,” and calling Donald Trump out for breaking his campaign promise to the LGBTQ community.
Decked out in a feminine, ruffly, pink “pussy bow” top (a look made famous by Trump’s controversial hot mic comments regarding grabbing unwilling women “by the p***y” ), Caitlyn Jenner addressed the new Commander-in-Chief directly in a video message. In her direct and to-the-point message to Trump, Jenner calls the removal of transgender bathroom protection in U.S. public schools a “disaster,” calling on Trump to fix what he’s broken.
“I have a message for President Trump from well, one Republican to another. This is a disaster. And you can still fix it. You made a promise to protect the LGBTQ community.”
Jenner then invited Trump to “Call me,” holding her hand up like a phone to ensure that there was no miscommunication.
. @Caitlyn_Jenner met with Speaker @PRyan and @FoxBusiness anchor @MariaBartiromo during #Inauguration2017 pic.twitter.com/xrMMjCbMGf
— Log Cabin Republicans (@LogCabinGOP) January 22, 2017
In the video, Caitlyn Jenner (who as strong Republican ties and has even previously been seen out partying with Paul Ryan at a political event) also gave a shout-out to trans kids impacted by Trump’s new decree. As well as the bullies (even high-level political bullies) who go out of their way to make the lives of transgender youth as difficult as possible.
“I have a message for the trans kids of America. You’re winning. I know it doesn’t feel like it today or every day, but you’re winning. Very soon we will win full freedom nationwide and it’s going to be with bipartisan support. You can help by checking out the National Center for Transgender Equality and letting Washington hear you loud and clear. Now I have a message for the bullies: You’re sick. And because you’re weak, you pick on kids, you pick on women or anyone else you think is vulnerable. Apparently even becoming the attorney general isn’t enough to cure some people of their insecurities.”
While it appeared that Caitlyn Jenner and her attack on the new Trump action should have been universally well-received by the trans community, that didn’t end up being the case at all. Rather, as Too Fab reports, it didn’t take long for other members of the trans community to come out swinging against Jenner and her attempt to “help” the community take on Trump.
Isis King, a former contestant on America’s Next Top Model (and also the first trans gal to appear on the show), claimed in a scathing open letter released Friday that she had met Caitlyn Jenner in the past. And, according to King, the experience was not a positive one.
“Caitlyn and her handler walked in front of me as if I had not been waiting and straight into the empty elevator. [Then her handler asked] ‘I’m sorry. Can you wait until the next one comes?’”
According to Isis, there was more than enough room to share the elevator, and the incident left her reeling from Caitlyn Jenner’s apparent “white privilege.”
When Jenner released her Trump call-out over the controversial trans bathroom issue, Isis King took the opportunity to rip into Jenner and let the reality TV star know that the trans cause will proceed just fine without her advocacy and/or intervention.
“Caitlyn: I have, like so many women of color, helped blazed trails for our sisters, brothers and siblings, and I have seen how you treated me. We do not need you to save us.”
Since King’s response to Caitlyn Jenner went viral, pop artist (and LGBTQ advocate) Sham Ibrahim spoke out to the Inquisitr to blast Isis and defend Caitlyn Jenner and her use of her high-profile soap box to call out Trump and advocate for trans bathroom rights.
“I completely disagree. Isis king felt a certain way and using her personal experience with Caitlyn, however Unpleasant it may have been, to pass judgment on a much bigger issue. This is not about race. The trans issue of using the restroom corresponding with your gender identity affects trans people of all races and all levels of transition.”
Further, Ibrahim also took to his Instagram account to share his pride in Caitlyn Jenner’s public call-out of Donald Trump.
What do you think about the transgender bathroom issue? Did Donald Trump get it right when he eliminated the Obama-era trans bathroom protection? Or was Caitlyn Jenner correct in calling out Trump for scaling back trans rights as one of his first acts as POTUS?
[Featured Image by Charles Sykes/Invision/File/AP Images]