American skateboarder Taylor May Silverman sparked a major controversy in the United States last November after she was unhappy about finishing second behind transgender skateboarder Lillian Gallagher at a Red Bull competition.
“It’s not transphobia. To participate in competitions with female athletes.
Taylor commented on her Instagram page on May 17, “The trans contestant won $1,000 in the qualifiers, $3,000,000 in the finals, and $1,000 on the best trick, totaling $5,000,000.”
“I deserve to be recognized for my victory and paid for first place,” said the skater from Kalamazoo, Michigan, after running the stages in Detroit, and the finals in Lincoln, Nebraska while loathing second place in the race. .
As she said her request was not immediately answered by Red Bull, she decided to appeal to social media (six months later), and ended up receiving a barrage of criticism for her attitude, as well as Along with people in favor of his position.
“I’m tired of being fed up in the silence,” Taylor shouted on her Instagram account, as well as tagging two famous names from the American far-right, like Ben Shapiro and Tim Poole, in the post who supported the girl’s initiative. , which angered the skateboarding community even more.
The skate event in question is called the Red Bull Cornstone, an inclusive competitive circuit in the American Midwest known for its overly conservative stance.
By raising such a sensitive topic, and exposing her opinion to the media, Taylor has become the center of attention, and a sub-celebrity, especially after the interview aired – months after the fact.
To skater Lily Goodley of Austin, Texas, who skated at the championships with both competitors: “In 2022, the skate community is increasingly becoming a welcoming place for LGBTQIA+ people, and trans bodies who are competing, are touring, going pro and revolutionizing the video parts,” he said.
Lily responded to the magazine, “complaining that she deserves the top spot more than anyone else is shameful and unsafe behavior, plus the transphobia with her outspoken radical feminism, makes Taylor’s behavior worse than any associate of this skate community.” should be absolutely hated.” Vice.
“There was always tension in Michigan about being a woman and a skater, and it eased a little bit over the years, and what Taylor did was a step back in the most funky way,” said Michigan skater Kara Brower. , who organizes programs for girls and knows the difficulties of being a female skater in the United States.
“We skate because it frees us up. It allows us to fall 100 times to the ground and hit the trick only once. We see the beauty in perseverance, and today more skaters of all genders and races in a sport like this.” which were once dominated by white people, where a more inclusive environment is created”, reflects Browder.
On the other hand, famed skateboarder Nora Vasconcelos showed that skateboarding does not tolerate this kind of attitude, with Taylor’s reply: “It’s disrespectful, you should reconsider your way into skateboarding… maybe it will give you some compassion and Can bring a sense of community in exchange for money, or whatever you’re looking at with such a terrible attitude,” he said.
As reported in Vice, Taylor and Gallagher declined to comment on the controversy, and Red Bull responded by saying in a statement that it does not call for gender identity in the admissions process, and that skaters race between categories of men. can select. Or the woman on the day of the competition.
