Rosanna Arquette, like many voters, were caught off guard when Caitlyn Jenner, a trans woman, announced she was supporting Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential race. Caitlyn is a prominent LGBTQ activist, but also a lifelong Republican; she justified her support by saying she was convinced that Trump would protect and promote LGBTQ rights. Two years later, that’s clearly not the case. Now, Caitlyn has apologized in a passionate op-ed for the Washington Post, which Rosanna has read and supports. Rosanna, an LGBTQ activist herself whose late sister, Alexis Arquette, was trans, told HollywoodLife EXCLUSIVELY that she forgives Caitlyn for supporting Trump in the past. She believes that Caitlyn’s redeeming herself by coming around and condemning the president.
I think that [Caitlyn] sees the light now and she’s getting that what she did was wrong,” Rosanna told us at the Cedars-Sinai Board of Governors Gala in Beverly Hills on October 25, “and the fact that she is saying that is really important. I believe in forgiveness and redemption, so if a person says that they’re seeing the light and they’re changing, [that’s] fine. Rosanna disagrees with those who are saying Caitlyn’s apology comes a little too late, as well. “A lot of people are saying that. I don’t feel that that’s okay to do to somebody.”
Caitlyn wrote in her lengthy piece in WaPo, in part, that, “I was wrong. The reality is that the trans community is being relentlessly attacked by this president. The leader of our nation has shown no regard for an already marginalized and struggling community. He has ignored our humanity. He has insulted our dignity. He has made trans people into political pawns as he whips up animus against us in an attempt to energize the most right-wing segment of his party, claiming his anti-transgender policies are meant to ‘protect the country.’ This is politics at its worst. It is unacceptable, it is upsetting, and it has deeply, personally hurt me.”
Yep! It’s personally hurt every Trans person in the United States. While Trump promised he would support the LGBTQ community, that went out the window when he picked Mike Pence as his running mate, a man who has a history of horrific, anti-gay policies as a senator and Governor of Indiana. Since becoming president, Trump has tried to ban trans persons from serving in the military, and is now considering redefining the definition of gender legally to essentially erase transgender. Caitlyn believes she was tricked by Trump the candidate when she put her support behind him.
“Following Trump’s election as president, I saw fertile ground for change within the Republican Party on LGBTQ issues. Trump was the first Republican presidential candidate to claim to support this valuable, vulnerable community, and I was encouraged by the applause he received when he said at the Republican National Convention in July 2016 that he would stand up for the LGBTQ community… I was optimistic that this was how I could leverage my privilege for change.” Rosanna is the first celebrity to lend her support to Caitlyn following this op-ed. We’re eager to see who else joins her.