Dee Snider has issued a statement in response to being dropped from the performing lineup at next month’s Pride event in San Francisco.

What led to San Francisco Pride to drop Snider from their event?

As previously reported, San Francisco Pride released a statement titled “San Francisco Pride Distances Itself from Dee Snider” following the Twisted Sister singer’s support of a statement from Paul Stanley about gender-affirming care of minors. Stanley’s statement contained multiple inaccuracies pertaining to parents seeking gender-affirming care for their trans/non-binary children. (A breakdown and examination of those inaccuracies can be read in the article below.) Snider would later retweet Stanley’s statement and said, “You know what? There was a time where I ‘felt pretty’ too. Glad my parents didn’t jump to any rash conclusions! Well said, @PaulStanleyLive.”

SF Pride’s statement said, in part, ” … When we were notified about the tweet in which Dee expressed support for KISS’s Paul Stanley’s transphobic statement, we were heartbroken and angry. The message perpetuated by that tweet casts doubt on young trans people’s ability to self-identify their gender.”

The statement further noted, “Transgender people, particularly transgender women and children of color, are disproportionately affected by hate and violence. And with transphobia proliferating and becoming more and more enshrined in law throughout the country — we have to stand up for the most impacted among us. We have mutually agreed to part ways, but appreciate Dee seeing this as a teachable moment and a reminder that even allies need to be educated to ensure that they are not casually promoting transphobia. To all our allies — we want to call you in — not call you out.”

Snider’s Statement

Since news of SF Pride dropping him from their event lineup, Snider has issued a lengthy statement in response titled, “So, I hear I’m transphobic. Really?

Snider begins his statement by saying how honored he was for being invited to perform at SF Pride. He also mentioned he’s been a long supporter of the LGBTQ+ community and that he was going to perform the Twisted Sister classic “We’re Not Gonna Take It” at the event. In fact, the song was going to be used as the event’s “battle cry” and have the song’s title changed to “Queer Not Gonna Take It.”

Snider says of the song use and title change, “Is that transphobic? I was not aware the Transgender community expects fealty and total agreement with all their beliefs and any variation or deviation is considered ‘transphobic.’ So, my lifetime of supporting the Transgender community’s right to identify as they want and honoring whatever changes they may make in how they present themselves to the world isn’t enough? Why not?”

He continues, “I’ve recently stated I do not believe young children are ready to decide their gender allocation. I believe their choices should be supported and accepted by their parents, but I do not think kids have the mental capabilities to make rational, logical decisions on things of a magnitude that will affect them for the rest of their lives. I do not believe they are mentally developed enough.”

Snider then quotes Dr. Jennifer Katzenstein, who is the Director of psychology, neuropsychology and social work and co- director of the Center for Behavioral Health at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. Dr. Katzenstein says, ” … it is important for parents to remember that development varies across children, and that one age (such as age 7) is not the end of development, or a ‘deadline for developing reasoning skills.’ Cognitive development continues into adulthood, and as parents, it is our responsibility to continue to challenge and support our children.”

Snider closes by touting his moderate views. He then says, “The Transgender community needs moderates who support their choices, even if we don’t agree with every one of their edicts. For some Transgender people (not all) to accuse supporters, like me, of transphobia is not a good look for their cause. Don’t reject people who are willing to march, sing and stand with you just because we don’t perfectly see eye-to-eye. We are still your allies.”

He adds, “I, Dee Snider, will continue to support the Transgender community and their right to choose even if they reject me and moving forward, I am open to educating myself so I can be a better ally.”

Snider’s full remarks can be viewed here.

We’re Parents of Trans Kids. Here’s What Paul Stanley Has Wrong About Gender-Affirming Care.

Paul Stanley made headlines in the past 48 hours due to his social media post regarding gender-affirming care.

Stanley’s entire statement can be read below, which he titled “My Thoughts On What I’m Seeing.” According to Stanley, what he is seeing are parents “encouraging participation in a lifestyle that confuses young children into questioning their sexual identification as though some sort of game.” Additionally, he says, ” … Some adults mistakenly confuse teaching acceptance with normalizing and encouraging a situation that has been a struggle for those truly affected and have turned it into a sad and dangerous fad.” 

Stanley appears to recognize the existence of trans people in his statement. However, he also appears to take issue with parents that are helping their children receive gender-affirming care. 

I am the proud stepmother to a young trans woman who has been receiving gender-affirming care for over a year now. The improvement in her mental health and overall well-being has been immense. There are not enough words to describe the positive change I’ve seen in her, and I make my living off of writing words.

Understandably, I found Stanley’s comments very disappointing, especially since I’m a longtime KISS fan. I’ve seen the band multiple times in concert and even own a couple of KISS Kondoms. I don’t believe Stanley was being malicious — unlike certain beer-shooting musicians — but it seems what he’s “seeing” isn’t the full picture.

I reached out to my fellow Beasley Media Group colleague Adam 12 from Boston’s Rock 92.9 to discuss all of this, since he, like me, is a proud parent to a trans child. Here is our discussion of what we think Stanley has wrong about gender-affirming care.

The following discussion has been edited for length and clarity. Additional notes/statistics will be in italics and parentheses.