What do Alice Schwarzer and Alice Cooper have in common? Now aside from the first name…
Both the Rhenish women’s rights activist and publicist (80) and the US shock rocker (75) consider the current transgender debate, especially gender reassignments, to be a “fashion”.
In an interview with the digital music platform “Stereogum”, the pioneer of scary pop gave the following dictation:
“Of course there are serious transgender cases. But I’m afraid it’s also a fad. There’s a lot of people who claim to be trans just because they want to be,” Cooper said.
“I think it’s fundamentally wrong when you have a clueless six-year-old kid who just wants to play. It gets completely confused if you tell it, ‘Yes, you’re a boy, BUT you could be a girl if you want.’”
Similar to the controversial “Emma” traditional feminist, Cooper takes the view that the concepts of a transgender or non-binary existence are difficult to handle, especially for young people.
“It’s completely confusing for a kid. And also for teenagers,” says Cooper.
“You’re just beginning to find your identity at that age. And then suddenly there’s this announcement: ‘You can be anything you want. You can be a cat too, if you want.’ Maybe someone sees themselves as a tree. My statement on this Keep the ball flat! Are we in a Kurt Vonnegut novel?’ We’ve reached a point of absurdity…”
Cooper’s position may be due to a certain age radicalism. The web magazine “Ultimate Classic Rock” (UCR) finds Cooper’s announcements “surprising”. In the past he has repeatedly crossed the boundaries of gender norms. Decades ago, the singer appeared with shrill make-up and also in women’s clothing.
The “Stereogum” editors referred to a Cooper interview from 1974. There he pretended to be a fortune teller even without a crystal ball: “In the future everyone will be bisexual!”
His credo for 2023 is:
“One should at least first become sexually aware. Before you start questioning whether you’re a boy or a girl. I see it simply and logically: if you have these genitals, you are a boy. If you have these genitals, you are a girl. There is a difference between ‘I am a man who is a woman or I am a woman who is a man’ and wanting to be a woman. You were born a man. OK, so that’s a fact. You have these things here.”