American comedian Matt Mathews sparked a digital firestorm after abruptly stopping his interviewer when she used the pronoun “them” (they/them) to talk about his partner. True to his direct, no-nonsense style, the comedian delivered a line that went viral within minutes:
“We don’t use that pronoun shit here. You’re a boy or a girl. I have a boyfriend, he’s a ‘he.’ We don’t do any of that they/them crap”.
The clash of opinions erupted instantly. On one side, LGBTQ+ activists and nonbinary people accuse him of turning his back on his own community and validating hate speech; on the other, thousands of users applaud him for speaking “without mincing words” against what they consider a linguistic imposition. Disrespect toward diversity, or simply a gay comedian saying what many people think?