YOUR FAVORITE LOGO TV SHOWS ARE ON PARAMOUNT+

Transphobic Bus Arrives in New York City

Since landing in the city, activists have vandalized it with pro-trans graffiti.

After being kicked out of Madrid for its discriminatory message, a transphobic bus has landed in the streets of New York City.

The "Free Speech Bus" will spend the week parked outside the United Nations and Trump Tower. On the side of the bright orange vehicle is the phrase: “It’s biology: Boys are boys... and always will be. Girls are girls... and always will be. You can’t change sex. Respect all.”

The organizers behind the bus include anti-LGBT groups National Organization for Marriage and International Organization for the Family. Together, the hate groups helped bring CitizenGo's bus from Europe to the States for an east coast tour that will include stops in New York, New Haven, Boston, Philadelphia and Washington D.C.

“It’s biology, not bigotry,” Brian S. Brown said of the Free Speech Bus’ message in a press release. “Men and women were created equally, each given a gender that is fixed, immutable and complementary. Rather than perpetuate a lie that gender can be changed based on emotions and feelings, we should encourage people to embrace and love who they were made to be.”

Once the bus landed in Manhattan, several local LGBT rights groups joined together to speak out against its transphobic message, including Advocates for Intersex Youth and OutRight Action.

“Free speech is a constitutional right, but language has consequences that must be considered,” Jessica Stern of OutRight Action International told the Huffington Post. “Trans youth already have an extremely high risk for violence, discrimination, and suicide. Broadcasting a message that erases and denies the reality that transgender and intersex children and youth exist is irresponsible, factually misleading, disrespectful and dangerous. This vehicle is part of the reason trans youth are driven to suicide.”

Twitter

Early Friday morning, images were shared on Twitter showing that the bus had been defaced with pro-trans graffiti and that rocks had been hurled at the front window.

The campaign was originally conceived by CitizenGo, a social conservative online advocacy platform in Spain. Earlier this year, a similarly styled bus drove through Madrid and Barcelona where it received immense backlash from LGBT rights groups and government officials.

The bus even received a shout-out from Chelsea Clinton, who tweeted, "Please don't bring these buses to the U.S. (or anywhere)."

CitizenGo cheekily responded: "Don't Worry, we'll be there soon."

Joseph Grabowski, a spokesperson for NOM, told BuzzFeed that the bus is traveling through traditionally inclusive and progressive east coast cities in order to embolden social conservatives who might feel alone.

“One of the purposes of the bus tour is to have people speak up if they feel uncomfortable and let the business owner know,” Grabowski said. “This can’t be considered transphobic or bigoted.”

Latest News