Elon Musk sparked a heated debate online over his denunciation of the word “cisgender.”
“Cis is a heterophobic word. Shame on anyone who uses it,” he posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, Wednesday.
One person who disagreed with the tech mogul, explained, “Cis(gender) describes a person whose gender identity corresponds to their sex assigned at birth.
“It is the opposite of trans(gender). It has zero to do with sexual orientation and thus is neither ‘heterophobic’ nor homophobic. Please learn how to Google.”
Another simply called out Musk for having “gotten so lost.”
However, several others agreed with the SpaceX founder.
One person commented, “All the made-up words by the left are truthphobic words.”
While a second remarked, “Thank you. Heterophobia is a real thing.”
Merriam-Webster defines cisgender as those whose “internal sense of gender corresponds with the sex the person was identified as having at birth.”
The dictionary also notes that it does not consider the word to be disparaging because slurs are words or phrases intended to “insult” someone, and cisgender “and its variants are overwhelmingly used neutrally.”
Whether or not Musk’s opinions are factually correct, the X owner, 52, has vowed to make his social media platform a place for “free speech,” resembling a “town square” where everyone has a voice.
For instance, in June 2023, he seemingly trolled actress Megan Fox after she was accused of forcing her sons to wear “girl’s clothes,” posting on X at the time, “Looking to hire a VP of Witchcraft & Propaganda.”
Musk’s free speech mantra has gotten him into some trouble over the past year, though.
In November 2023, the Tesla CEO was accused of allowing anti-semitism to run rampant on X and even endorsing a hateful comment about Jews himself – which he denied.
The move caused many advertisers, including Walt Disney, to pull their content from the site, causing the social media company to lose millions of dollars.
However, others have found X’s open forum to be an ideal place where their ideas can finally be heard without censorship.
Former CNN anchor Don Lemon announced this week that he will be launching a new digital show on the platform following his abrupt exit from his former employer after 17 years on the network.
“I’ve heard you… and today I am back bigger, bolder, freer!” Lemon, 57, wrote on X Tuesday, adding that “The Don Lemon Show” will be “streaming on the platforms where the conversations are happening. And you’ll find it first on X, the biggest space for speech in the world.”
