Elon Musk Declares 'Cisgender' and 'Cis' as 'Slurs' on Twitter, Fueling Anti-Trans Controversy

June 21, 2023:- Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of Twitter, has once again stirred controversy with his recent comments against the transgender community. In his latest anti-trans statements, Musk has rejected using specific terms on the platform that holds significance for transgender individuals.

A Twitter user shared their experience of receiving messages from “trans activists” after expressing their rejection of the term ‘cis’ and their unwillingness to be called by it. They revealed that they were targeted with derogatory language like ‘cissy’ and were told they were ‘cis’ regardless of their preference. They highlighted the double standards at play and asked readers to imagine the situation if roles were reversed.

Musk tweeted that repeated and targeted harassment towards any account would result in temporary suspensions for the offending statements. He also stated that the words ‘cis’ or ‘cisgender’ are considered slurs on the platform. Furthermore, he labeled the person who coined the term ‘cis’ as a “contemptible creep” with serious problems.

Musk has a history of making unilateral decisions about Twitter’s policies based on his preferences. However, whether this stance will be adopted as an official policy by the platform remains to be seen.

The term “cisgender” holds importance in the vocabulary of many transgender individuals as it refers to people who identify with the sex assigned to them at birth.

Although Twitter’s hateful conduct policy does not explicitly mention the term, it prohibits targeting individuals with repeated slurs, tropes, or content that aims to degrade or perpetuate negative stereotypes about protected categories.

Musk has previously publicly attacked transgender people, even going as far as stating his intention to actively lobby for the criminalization of healthcare options for transgender children, which he believes can lead to irreversible and severe changes.

Insider conducted a test in April that revealed Twitter’s limitation on the visibility of specific tweets sent through direct messages when terms like “trans,” “transgender,” or “intersex” were used.

It is worth noting that Musk has a transgender daughter legally changed her name in 2022 due to her gender identity and desire to disassociate from her biological father, Elon Musk.

When contacted for comment, Twitter responded with an automated message that provided no context regarding Musk’s claims.