The 39-year-old English comedian slams media for insulting Bruce, saying, 'This is bullying. Stop. Stop. Bruce Jenner is a human being.'
- Jan 20, 2015
AceShowbiz - Russell Brand defended Bruce Jenner, who has been surrounded by rumors of gender transitioning, on his daily YouTube show "The Trews", posted on Friday, January 16. In the video, Russell slammed media for their insulting speculations about Bruce.
He began, "For certain sections of the media, transphobia seems to be the most recent accepted and encouraged form of prejudice now that racism and homophobia are not tolerated. It's interesting, isn't it? How as we sort of grow and accumulate more information, we can't really be homophobic anymore because being gay is not really an issue, and we can't really be racist - but we can still be transphobic, can't we?"
The video then showed a clip of a journalist saying, "Bruce Jenner is counting down the hours until Halloween so he can throw on a dress, carry around a purse, and not have so many people answer questions!"
Russell responded, "Doesn't this seem like 'Blade Runner' or some dystopian film in which you see a bit of television and everything's a bit 'Hello, we're evil now!' When it's a celebration of the worst aspects of values?"
The video then featured a TMZ clip in which one staffer said Bruce had "boobs." Russell said, "He looks like he has boobs! It's like he's laid out on a mortician's slab to be judged. Like in life we're already subject to this kind of scrutiny, and to what end?"
He went on, "What this does? Is it sanctions people to be judgmental and cruel towards transgender folk - and this is mainstream media. Mainstream media - it's the stream, and it's the most main stream that there is. So when people see someone in the street who looks transgender, they say, 'What's my opinion on transgender again?' It's to point and judge!"
"The level of scrutiny... like, I suppose one day these artifacts will be strewn in some wasteland, like Egyptian and Greek civilization ended, and in the ashes - these are the artifacts that we'll leave," he added, "Extraterrestrials will pick through it wondering what kind of people we were - bullies!"
Later, in a response to a TV show in which the host asked the viewer, "Do you think Bruce wants to be a woman? Tweet us and let us know," Russell said, "Do you think people should be judged until they're driven into a hole, perhaps even suicide? Let us know!" He added, "This is bullying. Stop. Stop. Bruce Jenner is a human being."
Last week, Bruce became the victim of a photoshopped image. InTouch magazine doctored Bruce's head on Stephanie Beacham's body along with bright coral lipstick and blush-covered cheek for its cover picture. The photo was accompanied with headline, "Bruce's Story: My Life As a Woman."
