Vehemently anti-trans Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) went on a bizarre and inaccurate rant about trans representation on Netflix during an antitrust hearing about the company’s potential acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery’s studio and streaming assets.
Hawley peppered Netflix Co-CEO Ted Sarandos with questions about why the streaming platform provides “content for children [that] promotes a transgender ideology.”
He claimed “almost half” of Netflix content for young children “promotes a transgender ideology agenda,” a phrase he most likely used to mean the inclusion of a trans character or the mention of being trans. Nevertheless, Sarandos said he didn’t “have any idea where that number would come from” and called the statistic “inaccurate.”
Hawley did not offer a source for his data, but he may be referring to a report from the anti-LGBTQ+ group Concerned Women for America (CWA) that claimed “41% of G-rated series, and 41% of TV-Y7-rated series on Netflix contain LGBTQ+ content.” Even if that were true (though it should be questioned based on the clear bias of the organization), the phrase LGBTQ+ implies representation of a wide variety of identities, not specifically trans characters.
In December, CWA urged the administration to scrutinize Netflix’s children’s content ahead of the streamer’s proposed merger with Warner Bros. CWA declared the platform an “active driver” of the so-called “LGBTQ agenda.”
Here's Josh Hawley going on a several-minute rant about trans people existing in Netflix content: www.youtube.com/live/447CgcA…
Hawley then claimed gender-affirming care for youth is “incredibly detrimental,” despite a mountain of evidence to the contrary. He then complained that he and his wife have been forced to pre-screen all children’s Netflix content before allowing their three young children to watch it.
“I don’t want my kids being pushed an agenda about their sexuality or gender identity when I have not had the opportunity first to discuss it with them and to form them in that,” he said. “And frankly, on behalf of parents around the country, it offends me that Netflix is pushing this content at parents in what seems to be a very coordinated, thought-through, planned-out agenda in a way that frankly, I think, undermines parents.”
Sarandos told Hawley that Netflix has “state-of-the-art tools for you to manage those choices for your children and to block any title that you might be offended by for any reason.”
He then reminded Hawley that other parents may have different values. “We are parents at Netflix as well. We share all your concerns about raising kids and also the ability to raise them as you see fit in your household – and anyone else’s household as well.”
But Hawley only seemed to care about the company’s lack of capitulation to his own personal beliefs.
“My concern is that you don’t share my values or those of many other American parents,” he said, “and you want the United States government to allow you to become one of the largest, if not the largest, streaming monopolist in the world. I think we oughta be concerned about what content you’re promoting.”
Hawley also referred to trans representation as a “highly sexualized, highly controversial… agenda,” a common transphobic stereotype used to imply that trans people aren’t people like everyone else.
Sarandos explained, “We feature a wide variety of stories and programs to meet a wide variety of people’s tastes.”
CNN characterized the recent antitrust hearing as a mere “culture-war fight over ‘wokeness.'” Conservative lawmakers focused their questioning on DEI and “woke” content.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) reportedly called Netflix “a propaganda outlet pushing one particular political view with much greater market power.”
Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) accused Netflix of having “the wokest content in the history of the world.” He claimed the “overwhelmingly woke” content is “not reflective of what the American people want to see.”
“Why in the world would we give a seal of approval or a thumbs up to make you the largest behemoth on the planet related to content?”
Republicans have been coming after Netflix’s LGBTQ+ content throughout the past year. In October, former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) announced she canceled her Netflix subscription after an episode featuring a trans character in a show that Netflix canceled in 2022.
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If you are in a committed relationship with someone of a different gender but still have sex and/or romantic connections with someone of the same gender then you might be hetero-monogamous. But what does this term exactly mean? We’ve broken it down for you.
The term has been used by Nova Hawthorne, who wrote about her experiences for Metro and The Mirror, to describe her relationship with her partner of several years, James.
The couple are exclusively monogamous with each other but Nova, who is bisexual, still goes on dates and sleeps with other women, but not men. James however, who is heterosexual, does not date anyone besides Nova.
“While the technical definition of hetero-monogamy is a man and woman in an exclusive relationship, the way I’m using it is slightly different,” Nova explained.
“Essentially, a couple agrees to be monogamous with each other when it comes to people of their partner’s gender, but they remain open to sexual relationships with the other genders if one or both partners are bisexual or queer.
“I am only in a relationship with one person – a man – but I am allowed to sleep with women. James is straight and exclusively with me. I, on the other hand, am bisexual, and so can still date and occasionally sleep with women.”
She went on to summarise the arrangement as a way of “honouring my sexuality without feeling like I have to suppress a part of myself”.
Nova said she has previously been in completely monogamous relationships with both men and women but in those relationships felt her continued attraction to other people created an “inner conflict”.
In this way, a hetero-monogamous relationship is not about “looking for loopholes” but creating a relationship which fulfils both people equally.
Nova and James’ relationship falls under the broad umbrella that makes up polyamory or ethical non-monogamy (ENM), which is loosely defined as the practice of being romantically involved with multiple, consenting partners.
Polyamory is not the same thing as polygamy – a practice where one person, typically a man, has multiple spouses often without consent. It is illegal in many countries, including the UK, the US and Canada.
Early on in their relationship, Nova admits she was nervous to talk to James about the door being open on their relationship, unsure how he would react.
But James was accepting of her needs and she described what she felt as “a huge relief”. Since those early days they have found a dynamic that works for them.
Communication is key and whilst Nova states there are no “set rules or boundaries” when she is dating women, she still lets James know what is happening.
“It’s a balance of respect and trust, and it hasn’t caused any issues between us. In fact, I think it’s brought us closer because we’ve built our relationship on mutual understanding.”
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