This article from the Guardian got me thinking.

Lou Reed’s “Walk on the Wild Side” is not transphobic. The song was in many ways a declaration of love from Lou Reed to transgender women.

The album, produced by David Bowie (gender variant in his own right) and Mick Ronson, was called Transformer, which is no coincidence.

The phrase “he was a she” is not an offensive use of pronouns when seen in context. Reed refers to Holly as “she” throughout. The “he was a she” refers to gender presentation, not gender identity.

Photof Holly Woodlawn, the Holly of “Walk on the Wild Side”.



Holly came from Miami F.L.A.

Hitch-hiked her way across the U.S.A.

Plucked her eyebrows on the way

Shaved her legs and then he was a she

She said, hey babe, take a walk on the wild side

Said, hey honey, take a walk on the wild side.

The idea that the song sexualizes trans women reflects a misunderstanding found among some trans activists: that presenting trans women as sexy or attractive must mean that they are objectified and that the men who love them have to be perverted fetishists.

Not only do these statements imply that it is wrong for trans women (or any woman, for that matter) to feel sexy or present as an attractive person, they also stops men from approaching trans women. The new puritanism is not helping anyone.

Lou Reed with transgender girlfriend Rachel.

Lou Reed was also a good friend of trans woman Romy Haag, who was David Bowie’s girlfriend for a while.

Another reminder: Language changes as culture changes, and words get new meanings and new connotations. Once “gay” could be used as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender variance, much in the same way as “LGBTQ” is today. Not anymore. The word “transvestite” was for a long time an umbrella term for all types of gender variance, as “trans” is today. That word is now a slur. Historical context is important.