Transphobic Twitter trolls mock contestant on BBC’s The Voice
A number of Twitter users took to the microblogging site during The Voice UK this evening to send abusive messages mocking the perceived gender identity of a contestant.
During his intro on the show, James Byron says: “I have always been quite feminine, so I get a lot of people who confuse me for a woman.”
Byron wears makeup, and has in past interviews spoken of being bullied at school for his androgynous image.
Despite being open about past confusions over his gender identity, a minority of Twitter users took to the site to mock Byron for his appearance.
One user said: “Can’t cope with this he/she called James. It’s madness,” and referring to James’ name, another said: “Strange name for a woman that.”
“James is a hot tranny”, one user exclaimed, and another claimed: “That james would make a good transsexual u kno”.
Another Twitter user, also called James, said: “I’m embarrassed to share my name with that James person”.
Despite a minority who sent abusive messages, most comments referred to James’ performance on stage, and a majority sent messages of support.
Speakng in an interview with The Mirror earlier this year, Byron said: “Androgyny is part of my style. I really respect women a lot and I don’t see any shame in looking like a woman.
“I don’t dress up too crazily, but I do wear feminine make-up so I do get people judging me when I walk down the street.
“On The Voice I could showcase myself as a person, not an androgynous person.”
Byron was taken through following tonight’s Battles round.
