Armistead Maupin on trans rights and growing up gay in a homophobic household

Author Armistead Maupin is a pioneer - writing about AIDS and HIV for a mass audience and daring to include gay, lesbian, trans and queer lives when few others were.
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His ‘Tales of the City’ series, which started as a newspaper column in 1974, became worldwide best-selling novels and a Netflix series. It chronicles the lives of queer people in San Francisco and pokes fun at morality and social norms, touching millions of readers and viewers over 50 years. The beloved saga is now back for its 10th and final instalment, Mona of the Manor.
Now in his late 70s and living in London, the American writer opens up to Krishnan Guru-Murthy about growing up in the South in a “sexist, homophobic” conservative family, how he came to embrace the LGBTQ community, what life was like at the peak of the AIDS epidemic in the 80s.
Produced by Silvia Maresca.
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[@MrLetmein2011]

When you meet Armistead he is the most polite and lovely man , a real gentleman .

[@benjaminfranklin8412]

But a homophobe

[@benjaminfranklin8412]

Lesbians weren't born with penises

[@Limavadian]

I hope his words of support bring comfort to those in dire need of it.

[@ribbrascal]

They fuel my resistance to this trans-insanity.

[@lesleyscott938]

​@ribbrascal1065 so do please explain by what you mean by trans insanity ?

[@JesusChrist-s4v]

God Bless you 🙏. You are the embodiment of the Father I never had.

[@nanochase]

I expect the comment section for this to be fully civil and not degrade into a infinite spiral of time-wasting.

[@lookowl4693]

Truly inspirational

[@Durka-Durka01]

😂

[@ribbrascal]

lol

[@saoirsecruise6713]

What an amazing man! He is absolutely bursting with intellect, passion, heart and soul. We need more people like him in the world. His words are so profound ❤

[@marcusaxel3425]

The re-writing of history claiming that trans people started our movement has been debunked. They were there of course, but 'trans' didn't start our movement anymore than 'gay men' started our movement. It was a collective effort. I'm nearly as old as the Stonewall generation, we had a lot of solidarity back in the day. What we had in common was living in a society that hated all of us. It was self evident, we didn't even talk about it much, we didn't need to, we all understood the hatred and marginalization. We simply enjoyed our safe spaces and each other. Our bars and clubs were some of the most tolerant and accepting of the day. This gender or Woke movement is trying to create a false narrative, reflecting their intersectional obsessions of 2024. Applying their hierarchy of oppression to our history of a half century ago. Don't drink the intersectional kool-aid, it's destroying the LGBT movement. Pitting identity against identity.

[@howigotover798]

Armistead has clearly lost it.His latest Tales of the city was horrible.

[@Helvetica_5]

Fantastic interview with such an amazing writer ❤

[@justintcb5189]

I've always found it strange that trans rights are included in the LGBT movement - since one is focused on sexuality and the other is about identity.

[@t.p.mckenna]

The commonality is self-determination. Society looked on being gay as an unnatural thing. Finally, we established it was natural. It was our nature, and what did it matter anyway. No straight person was obliged to be gay. A physical man who identifies as female speaks and acts to what he feel. Likewise with female to male. This has been going on for decades and hardly needs going over again and again.

[@FindAReason-mi7go]

Yes, and if we think the moon is made of brie cheese then so it is. Because that is the way that I feel today so it is now a scientific reality. @@t.p.mckenna

[@FindAReason-mi7go]

Personally the trans thing is potentially dangerous to young gay males and females. Most gay people show gender cultural non-comformity as children. They grow up to be fairly well adjusted gay adults. Now the trans ideology is targeting young non-conforming children to have them "transition". The attempted suicide rate of transgender individuals in the West is between 32% and 50%. The rate of attempted suicide by cisgender gays is around 15%.

[@wendyhandy9065]

Yes how to confuse the population & use LGB which is an attraction & turn into transing the gay away 😢

[@benjaminfranklin8412]

Gays and lesbians dont argue that some women ejaculate sperm.

[@r8chlletters]

As long as one group isn’t forcing others into their subterfuge of reality and decide words don’t matter then I’m all for it. BE who YOU are and give others that same “space” to use common language that helps us understand and communicate. An author like maupin should appreciate the necessity and importance of how words can connect us and help us move away from violence.

[@JeffTiberend]

@@abcxyz2927 Wrong. Quit assuming that Trans rights mean that you have less rights. Trans rights mean that trans people and you have equal rights. Grow up!

[@meatrace]

@@JeffTiberend "equal rights" no it means that men have the right to women's bodies, trans rights means the right to censor, the right to bully, and the right to brutalize people who don't OBEY you.

[@CBoapinta]

@r8chlletters - oh stop with your transphobic nonsense, and try educating yourself.

[@monicaaparecidaoliveira8063]

Great interview!

[@rillihi697]

So...men invented this movement too huh? We do everything better, including being a woman 😂

[@dondraper2488]

This needs to be pushed more…. Let the infighting begin !

[@choppsiepacino8181]

Interviewee seems like a sound guy to me. But, I struggle with the phrase Love is Love. Where do you draw that line? On feminists … it’s perfectly okay for hard won women’s rights to be protected from predatory men who are using the trans position to act out as their deviant desires.

[@ribbrascal]

The woke left doesn't draw any lines, on anything. They have poisoned minds. /ex-Dem

[@ThePlayerOfGames]

Both arguments given here are chasing ghosts that don't exist.

[@CBoapinta]

Please share with us all of the statistics you have about "predatory men" pretending to be trans. I am so sick of people spreading that lie. It is simply not true. This is not a problem in our world. It is not a thing.

[@DardaniaLion]

Living your life yes, I have no problem with that. Anyone should be what they want to be BUT private please. By accident I was facing a parade of these people where I saw almost naked men and women. I found it so ugly seeing men almost showing their genitals. That is a crime. I as straight if I would go out like that, I am sure police would arrest me. So please keep yourself covered. What a shameful society we have created where saying to something not right as not right is wrong.

[@RobinPalmerTV]

Would you therefore kindly live your cishet life in private and get it out of my face please.

[@mac7040]

In relation to trans issues you can add to that and as long as you are an adult not brainwashing kids with your own personal ideology.

[@mariannehavisham8323]

I have been on many pride parades/marches. Have never seen naked men and women. Where are you going to?

[@CBoapinta]

@@mac7040 - you mean the way you are doing?

[@mac7040]

@@CBoapinta No chap you are mistaking science based education for ideology. Clearly you missed out on education as a child

[@AbulKalam-u7m1w]

Tuesday Come Allah 🇧🇩❤

[@stanbily9416]

They did not start our movement 🤦🏽‍♂️

[@CBoapinta]

They were among those who did, yes.

[@canopyeffect]

🙄

[@Jayne-z5s]

ACCESS DENIED TO THE SERPENT SPIRIT IN THE EARTH.

[@mikeflynn4373]

No...food processors did it.

[@levibee9451]

"Logical family" gives me a mental image of a bunch of gay Vulcans living together.

[@fufu3539]

Evil and gross

[@tonyadeney1245]

attitudes in USA europe have changed - /// adult private lives should be private - oddly france never suffered all these sexual political religous gender colour spats that seem weekly in the Uk - france secular has a tradition of respecting privacy -

[@mariannehavisham8323]

A french MP just apologised to the gay community for the historical persecution they faced in France -have you not been watching the news?

[@mariannehavisham8323]

Not so, there were laws criminalising gay folk in France in relatively recent history (well within living memory)

[@matthewkopp2391]

When I went to Berlin I met a gay man who escaped conservative French society in regards to homosexuality. So I don’t think France gets the medal for acceptance of differences.

[@MostlyLoveOfMusic]

what a great guy, very reasonable and empathetic thinker

[@ribbrascal]

LOL

[@Nellia..]

Trans rights 🏳️‍⚧️

[@myluckyspring]

19:05 trans talk

[@Hartley_Hare]

The dull 'thump' as women go under the bus.

[@MrMAXZ888]

1.7k views in 7 hours. Safe to assume LGBT content does not perform well with your "free Falastin🇵🇸" Islamist audience, channel 4.

[@MrMAXZ888]

@Ardwick-Crome I've noticed that too😄 Not just Jones/Novara,.entire Left wing KZbin. "Free Palestine" is a profitable grift. Benefits everyone, except actual Palestinians.

[@heytherenordic7230]

The movement has failed and ruined it for gay people!

[@BrockSamson-i1i]

who decided that I, a gay man, have anything in common with a trans person? LGBT-whY?

[@meme4one]

It's a way of breaking down society into groups, to simplify and manage people. Who voted for or decided on this grouping? Who admits or defines more categories. The last thing the government wants is people united, so we are divided by race, class, accent, identity and any other category that can be imagined.

[@mariannehavisham8323]

Gay folk are often gender non conforming. Also they experience the same kinds of persecution and discrimination (at school, from religeous groups, legally/from the government, from family) they both suffer trauma from persecution. They both have to come out. They both have higher rates of addiction qnd mental illness due to the trauma discrimination and rejection causes And they both create chosen families. There is a shared experience. And there is a history of allyship to one another. Also drag is part of gay culture, so being creative with gender a degree of gender fluidity, it's not such a leap!

[@mariannehavisham8323]

Don't worry, no one is going to force you to be an ally or befriend or hang out with trans folk if you don't want to!

[@mariannehavisham8323]

People want allies who's heart is in it

[@lervish1966]

Everyone is a Thetan.

[@Durka-Durka01]

😂 Insane!

[@alisonschmitt9533]

Oh please….

[@derekb4977]

No they did not how dare you lie

[@w.urlitzer1869]

his act became boring. never expected that.

[@user-ku1np8bs8n]

It would be nice if he wasn’t so openly misogynist.

[@t.p.mckenna]

where? when? please illustrate your assertion via the timecode

[@benjaminfranklin8412]

​@t.p.mckenna only misogynists believe that some lesbiands have penises

[@ahmedzahir2865]

You should provide an explanation if you make such accusations.

[@benjaminfranklin8412]

@@t.p.mckenna first sentence. To say trans people started the gay movement is dissmissive, ignorant, and disrecptful to the hardworking gays and lesbians that fought for civil rights. Wildl untrue.

[@t.p.mckenna]

@@benjaminfranklin8412 I don't know who you are, but I do know Maupin's work and have heard him talk often about his story, I certainly now him to be wholly undeserving of terms such as 'ignorant' and 'disrespectful'. Must less paling into consideration against so called 'hard working gays and lesbians'. Kindly build a bridge and get over yourself.