Mario Lopez has apologised for recent comments he made about parents allowing their children to pick their gender identities at a young age.
The TV personality appeared on Candace Owens podcast last month, and during their discussion they talked about “weird trends” in Hollywood, and brought up the fact that celebrities like Charlize Theron have let their child “pick their gender”.
Mario said: “Look, I’m never one to tell anyone how to parent their kids, obviously, and I think if you come from a place of love, you really can’t go wrong.”
“But at the same time, my God, if you’re 3 years old and you’re saying you’re feeling a certain way, or you think you’re a boy or a girl, whatever the case may be, I just think it’s dangerous as a parent to make that determination.”
Evidently it’s now *scandalous* to say that a child probably shouldn’t be making their own life-altering decisions at 3 years old.
????♂️
Mario Lopez and Candace Owens discuss.@MarioLopezExtra @RealCandaceO pic.twitter.com/2Wdc79SrjW— PragerU (@prageru) July 31, 2019
“It’s sort of alarming and, my gosh, I just think about the repercussions later on,” he added.
Mario’s comments caused serious backlash, and Queer Eye star Karamo Brown publicly called him out on Twitter.
He tweeted: “I’m disappointed to read @MarioLopezExtra comments about parent’s who support their child’s openes about their gender identity.”
“As a social worker I am trained to identify abuse or neglect of a child. Healthy & safe dialogue w/ kids is neither abusive, neglectful or ‘dangerous’.”
I’m disappointed to read @MarioLopezExtra comments about parent’s who support their child’s openes about their gender identity. As a social worker I am trained to identify abuse or neglect of a child. Healthy & safe dialogue w/ kids is neither abusive, neglectful or “dangerous.” https://t.co/aTkL2sLm4u
— Karamo Brown (@Karamo) July 31, 2019
In response to the backlash, Mario said in a statement: “The comments I made were ignorant and insensitive, and I now have a deeper understanding of how hurtful they were.”
“I have been and always will be an ardent supporter of the LGBTQ community, and I am going to use this opportunity to better educate myself. Moving forward I will be more informed and thoughtful.”
