In a since-deleted open letter on her Facebook account, Rose McGowan expressed immense displeasure with Caitlyn Jenner. The “Charmed” actress shared a series of memes involving quotes from Jenner overlaying images of a woman being raped, a woman giving birth, and a bruised Nicole Brown Simpson (who was Kris Jenner’s best friend before her murder).
McGowan wrote:
You want to be a woman and stand with us- well learn us. We are more than deciding what to wear. We are more than the stereotypes foisted upon us by people like you. You’re a woman now? Well fucking learn that we have had a VERY different experience than your life of male privilege.
Woman of the year? No, not until you wake up and join the fight. Being a woman comes with a lot of baggage. The weight of unequal history. You’d do well to learn it. You’d do well to wake up. Woman of the year? Not by a long fucking shot.
Her comments refer to something Jenner told BuzzFeed backstage before receiving one of Glamour’s Women of the Year awards on November 9. Responding to a pretty dumb question — “What’s the hardest part for you about being a woman?” — Jenner said that figuring out what to wear is the biggest challenge. In the accompanying video of her answering the question, it’s pretty clear that Jenner isn’t being entirely serious.
And, if McGowan had actually read Jenner’s response in full before launching her rant, she’d have realized that Jenner almost immediately clarified that womanhood isn’t just about dressing well and being able to contour.
The hardest part about being a woman is figuring out what to wear. It’s always that way; I never thought it would come to this. I had really no sense of style. Everyone around me in my family had the sense of style — I learned as much as I possibly could. But it’s more than that. I’m kind of at this point in my life where I’m trying to figure this womanhood thing out. It is more than hair, makeup, clothes, all that kind of stuff. There’s an element here that I’m still kind of searching for. And I think that’ll take a while. Because I think, as far as gender, we’re all on a journey. We’re all learning and growing about ourselves. And I feel the same way.
After accusations of transphobia, McGowan has since deleted the post, and written a followup on Twitter that states:
“Let me take this moment to point out that I am not, nor will I ever be, transphobic. The idea is laughable. Disliking something a trans person has said is no different than disliking something a man has said or that a woman has said. Being trans doesn’t make one immune from criticism.
I know that being a public figure is not easy. Being Caitlyn Jenner is most assuredly not easy, but that doesn’t absolve her of her of responsibility. Living as a woman in this backwards society is hard. We need all hands on deck. Those who have the microphone speak to many. Especially that family.
I’d be thrilled to fight alongside Caitlin Jenner. I just want her to know there is a monumental fight to be had.”
This article has been updated since it was originally posted to include McGowan’s new statement. We’ve also adjusted the headline.
