YouTuber James Charles has apologized for ‘implying’ transgender men aren’t men.

During his latest video, friend and fellow YouTuber Jeff Wittek asks how Charles defines his sexuality.

Charles then begins explaining about the Kinsey scale, a method of prescribing sexual orientation on a scale of zero to six. Zero means ‘exclusively heterosexual’, while six means ‘exclusively homosexual’.

‘If I had to put myself on it,’ Charles said. ‘I’d put myself as a 5.5.’

Wittek then asks: ‘So you’re not even full gay?’

Charles responds: ‘I mean, no. There have been girls in the past that I’ve thought they’re really, really beautiful. There’s also been, like, trans guys in the past too that I was really, really into for a moment in time.’

(The moment starts at 7:40)

The comment then caused people to wonder if James Charles didn’t truly see transgender men as men.

One social media user commented: ‘Please tell me I heard this wrong but did @jamescharles just say he (sic) not 100% gay because he has found a trans guy attractive before I- that ain’t it sis. Not here for it.’

Then someone responded: ‘I noticed this too and I was looking through the comments if anyone was gonna say something but everyone ignored it but like sis that’s transphobic?’

‘Right!’ the original commenter replied. ‘Like if you see the dude as a guy and think he’s hot, it shouldn’t make any difference if or not they’re trans or not.’

Another person tweeted: ‘James Charles if your (sic) a attracted to a man who has a vagina, it doesn’t make you straight.’

James Charles apology

The calls for an explanation prompted James Charles to clarify his remark and to apologize.

He wrote on Twitter yesterday (12 April) he ‘should’ve chosen’ his ‘words wiser’.

‘In attempt to explain the very complex concept of sexuality (& mine) in my vid today,’ he tweeted. ‘I unintentionally implied that my trans brothers & sisters arent valid. This is NOT what I was trying to say.

‘You are valid in your identity!! I apologize & should’ve chosen my words wiser!’ he said.

in attempt to explain the very complex concept of sexuality (& mine) in my vid today, I unintentionally implied that my trans brothers & sisters arent valid. this is NOT what I was trying to say. you are valid in your identity!! I apologize & should’ve chosen my words wiser!😞🏳️‍🌈 — James Charles (@jamescharles) April 12, 2019

Some people thanked Charles for his apology, but for others, the apology didn’t go far enough.

One person replied: ‘you said that being attracted to trans men makes you less gay. this tweet does NOT cover what you said even slightly. you fully implied that trans men are not real men. you can spout “you’re valid” bullshit all you want but that is NOT why people are mad at you.’

Another tweeted: ‘he clearly said something that invalidated a whole group of people! especially as an lgbt influencer with such a large following, he needs to fo (sic) better! this apology is not enough.’

‘The house!’

James Charles is no stranger to controversy, having also faced backlash at the end of last month.

He misused a phrase from drag culture, referencing ‘the house’, when it should be ‘the house down’.

He said the phrase ‘is by far one of [his] favorite things to say right now.

‘I heard it from another YouTuber named Rich Lux. Basically, any time something is very something else, you can say it is “the house.”

‘”The house” is the new best way to put emphasis on anything,’ he said.

One Twitter user schooled him: ‘As a gay person, I am disgusted.

‘The phrase is “the haus down boots” and was coined by the late, great Erica Andrews.

‘You’re gay, and whether I like it or not, a fairly famous gay guy. As representation for the community, you’re responsible for knowing your shit.’

See also

Lilly Singh puts bisexual, feminist spin to Bollywood bops in new video

YouTubers Shane Dawson and Ryland Adams announce engagement: ‘He said yes!’

Trans YouTube star Furry Potato shot and wounded outside Los Angeles synagogue