In her decades-long political career, Hillary Clinton has proven to be slow on the pickup of her understanding of the LGBTQ+ community. Throughout her terms as First Lady, senator, secretary of state and presidential candidate, Clinton has jumped into the tepid waters of political conversation when the tides are low and the political risk factor had waned away.  While Clinton and her husband had at one time actively pursued the gay community in the 90s as an interest group during her husband’s political campaigns, she did little to stand beside the rainbow when it came to bigger civil rights issues such as same-sex marriage.

In a recent interview with the U.K. newspaper The Sunday Times, Clinton proved that her lackluster approach to supporting and understanding the LGBTQ+ community prevails. 

Speaking to the Sunday Times about, Clinton described topics related to the trans community as something she is only “just learning about.”

In her interview with The Sunday Times, a media outlet that has often been slammed for its transphobic coverage and mistreatment of trans employees, Clinton claimed that she has only just learned about the concepts of being trans. 

“Errr,” Hillary said, according to the news piece “I’m just learning about this. It’s a very big generational discussion because this is not something I grew up with or ever saw.” She added, “It’s going to take a lot more time and effort to understand what it means to be defining yourself differently.”

The reporter interviewing Clinton drew upon the former presidential candidate’s response to ask more questions that had pretty leading statements. At one point the interviewer suggested that  “a lot of British feminists of Hillary’s generation have a problem with the idea that a lesbian who doesn’t want to sleep with someone who has a penis is transphobic,” and that these “British feminists” are “uncomfortable with people who are physically male” being in the same spaces as trans women in single-gender spaces.

In response, Clinton said that she “absolutely” felt as if “there is a legitimate concern about women’s lived experience and the importance of recognizing that, and also the importance of recognizing the self-identification [of transgender people]… This is all relatively new. People are still trying to find the language for it. I think in the right mindset this can be understood, but it’s going to take some time.”

She went onto further state she felt as if people need “to be sensitive to how difficult this is. There are women who’d say [to a trans woman], ‘You know what, you’ve never had the kind of life experiences that I’ve had. So I respect who you are, but don’t tell me you’re the same as me.’ I hear that conversation all the time.”

Clinton’s comments closely mirror her responses from last month, in which she said that trans rights are “very big generational discussion.” 

In a recent interview with The View, Clinton described her decision to remain married to Bill Clinton despite his humiliating affair in the 90s as one of the gustiest moves she’d ever made. She later expounded on this saying that other gutsy decisions she’d seen others make included being in interfaith and interracial marriages and raising trans children. “Sometimes when your child has an issue—I had a friend who, a few years ago, called up and said, ‘I don’t know who to talk to about this, but my little girl wants to be a boy. What do I do?'” She recalled. “Several of us—we didn’t know what to do, we’d never had a friend who faced that before—and several of us kind of read everything, talked to people, and gave her advice. And it was really gutsy of her to say, ‘Okay, I’m going to respect the feelings of my child, as hard as it is for me to understand this.’ So, I think when the question was asked personally—everyone faces a moment of decision. And you have to reach deep down inside and decide what’s right for you to do. Hopefully, it’s reached with love and understanding, but it’s gutsy.”

Clinton’s response underlines a misunderstanding about the trans community and parenting. Truly it is a reminder that being accepting of your child and their identity is just the most basic aspect of parenting. 

Now Conservative media outlets have capitalized on Clinton’s comments to justify attacking the trans community. 

This is particularly concerning how easily conservative outlets have spun news stories in their favor and the fact that Clinton continues to espouse transphobic beliefs.

Now Conservative media outlets have capitalized on Clinton’s comments to justify attacking the trans community. 

This is particularly concerning how easily conservative outlets have spun news stories in their favor and the fact that Clinton continues to espouse transphobic beliefs.

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If you were born after 1993, you remember the cultural phenomenon known as “the Macarena.”

Unless you’re suffering from some kind of head wound, you probably still know all the moves that go with that catchy Spanish dance song. Don’t be embarrassed, it got everyone — even Hillary Clinton. The entire nation was swept up harder than the floor en la cocina when Abuela thinks “good” company is coming over.

IMO, it was the biggest not-translated-from-Spanish hit since “Tequila” by the Champs.

For over two decades, its contagious rhythm and low difficulty have infected tacky weddings like a danceable version of the herpes virus. It reinvigorated America’s love for what it doesn’t understand and picked up where “the Electric Slide” left off–without even sounding like a ride for death row inmates at an execution-themed amusement park.

The song is a classic tale of ‘boy meets girl.’

It’s about a guy named Vitorino who has a girlfriend named Macarena. Stop me if you’ve heard this one–wait!

BUT there’s a catch!

Vitorino has been drafted! Our boy’s goin’ pro—oh, no! He’s going to Minnesota—wait! It’s even worse than that! How could that even be?!

Vitorino gets drafted into the military!

—oh, no!

Then, while he’s away at war, Macarena cheats on him!

These are the ACTUAL lyrics in the song:

“Now, come on. What was I supposed to do? He was out of town and his two friends were sooo fine!”

Basically, she participated in a devil’s three-way while her boyfriend was in the trenches protecting her right to do so.

With TWO of his “friends!”

—a couple of draft-dodging Judases!

What a f*cking nightmare?!

Imagine that, by some miracle, Vitorino isn’t dismembered or killed in battle, so he returns home, unscathed by the mental horrors of war. Then, a car blasting Los Del Rio on the radio picks him up from the airport. The catchy melody of haunting betrayal triggers previously dormant PTSD symptoms as he hears “the Macarena” for the first time…

Suddenly, he realizes why his girlfriend stopped responding to his letters and then either reenlists or hangs up his dancing shoes forever.

I started writing this piece because I woke up with the song stuck in my head. Now that it’s finished, I hope to finally be rid of it — unlike Vitorino — the vet who’s still at war with the soundtrack to the battle inside his broken heart.

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