RuPaul Charles has defended the use of
the word “tranny.”
Charles, who is best known by his drag
stage name RuPaul, has hosted 7 seasons of Logo's RuPaul's Drag
Race, the reality series in search of “America's next drag
superstar.”
Speaking to Marc Maron, RuPaul broke
his two-year silence on use of the word.
“I love the word tranny,” he told
Maron.
RuPaul said that it was not the
transgender community that is opposed to its use.
“These are fringe people who are
looking for storylines to strengthen their identity as victims. That
is what we are dealing with. It's not the trans community. 'Cause
most people who are trans have been through hell and high water. And
they've looked behind the curtain at Oz and go, 'Oh, this is a
fucking joke.' But some people haven't and they've used their
victimhood to create a situation where, 'No! You look at me! I want
you to see me the way you're supposed to see me!'”
(Related: RuPaul's
Drag Race responds to claims of transphobia.)
In late 2011, out singer Lance Bass
apologized for using the word “tranny.” At the time RuPaul
called the apology “ridiculous.”
“Of course Lance Bass, his intent
would never be to be derogatory,” RuPaul said this week. “Never.
So, you know, that's really ridiculous. And I hate the fact that
he's apologized. I wish he would have said, 'Fuck you, you tranny
jerk!'”
RuPaul called the topic “a lose-lose
situation.”
“You cannot win with this,” he
said. “I believe what I believe. You believe what you believe.
Let's just call it a truce.” (Audio from the podcast is embedded
on this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)