Jonathan Van Ness has now spoken up for the first time since their heartbreaking interview with Dax Shepard on Armchair Expert.
The Queer Eye star appeared in the most recent episode of I’ve Had It – a podcast cohosted by Jennifer Welch and Angie “Pumps” Sullivan. The conceit of the show is to talk about things that Welch, Pumps, and their guests “have had it with.” When asked about what was on their mind, Van Ness brought up the recent onslaught of anti-trans commenters flooding their social media pages since their interview on Armchair Expert, which sparked an off-the-rails argument with Shepard.
“I’ve had it with fear-mongering against queer people. I’ve had it with angry commenters. I’ve had it with so many things, you guys. It’s really been a time,” Van Ness said while getting a little bit emotional.
They continued, “I just think people forget that there’s like another person on the other side. I think it’s interesting that people feel so comfortable to call you names and then expect you to be nice about it, or understanding about it, or something. Ever since my Armchair Expert episode there’s just been a lot of like you know, TERF-y anti-trans people on my social.”
During Van Ness’ interview on Armchair Expert, which was shared on September 25 on Spotify, Shepard asked various uncomfortable questions about gender identity and the inclusion of trans people in sports. While the actor insisted during the interview that he loved Van Ness and was simply “playing devil’s advocate” in their conversation, Shepard did bring up dangerous talking points pushed by conservative pundits on a regular basis – narratives that are currently being used to attack trans people and take away their rights.
Van Ness tried to answer Shepard’s questions and explain why it was dangerous to be bringing up those topics, but the Armchair Expert host insisted on a “contrarian” approach for the interview. As a result, Van Ness ended up being in tears and declaring how exhausted they felt to have to defend trans people at all times, even when in the presence of people who claim to be allies to the LGBTQ+ community.
Thankfully, the I’ve Had It cohosts were much more supportive of Van Ness’ feelings and took the time to be educated by the Queer Eye star without pressuring them to speak for an entire community, and without counter-arguing the very real experiences that Van Ness – and the LGBTQ+ community as a whole – is going through.
We stan real allies who make space for queer people to share their stories on different platforms!
