Far-right anti-LGBTQ+ Daily Wire commentator Matt Walsh was criticized after he claimed that it's "far better for a child to be raised lacking one of his arms than to be raised lacking one of his parents" in a rant against same-sex parents.
Walsh—who has long opposed LGBTQ+ people becoming parents—likened voluntary surrogacy to "human trafficking," a claim that offers a further example of the ongoing "groomer" hysteria that has gripped the right-wing, who've accused LGBTQ+ people of building relationships, trust and emotional connections with children so they can manipulate, exploit and abuse them.
You can hear what Walsh said in the video below.
Walsh said:
“Now, if you hear all of that, how human bodies are rented for money, babies are exchanged as part of contractual agreements, and you think to yourself, wow, that sounds an awful lot like human trafficking, well, that just means you’re more perceptive than the average moderate conservative who is always on hand to wish a hearty congratulations to gay couples who engage in this trafficking."
"Because it is indeed human trafficking by definition.”
He then said that allowing same-sex couples to raise children is the same as "chopping a child's arm off":
“You know, it’s true that some children grow up with one arm or no arms, but that obviously doesn’t make it any more horrific, or any less horrific or barbaric to intentionally chop a child’s arm off."
“But this is essentially what we’re doing with commercial surrogacy. And – only it’s worse because it’s far better for a child to be raised lacking one of his arms than to be raised lacking one of his parents.”
“And that’s why I will never applaud and cheer when we get these birth announcements from gay couples, because I’m more concerned about what the child needs than what those men want.”
As if to justify his nonsensical claim, Walsh said "homosexual unions are sterile by their nature" and that it's "a sign from nature" and not "the result of sickness or genetic defect when a homosexual couple is unable to have children."
He concluded:
"That is a sign from nature, about as glaring and obvious as signs as you can ever see, that gay couples are not meant to have kids. They’re not meant to have kids because they cannot ever have kids because kids are meant to have both a mom and dad.”
Contrary to Walsh's beliefs, research published in the Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics found that children raised by gay and lesbian parents develop as well psychologically as those raised by heterosexual parents.
Many have condemned Walsh's remarks.
Walsh is a self-described "theocratic fascist" who has made multiple headlines for his anti-LGBTQ+ remarks.
When not calling for entertainers to be imprisoned for inviting drag performers on stage, he has continued to court controversy for his virulent and bigoted attacks against the transgender community.
For instance, during an appearance last year on comedian and commentator Joe Rogan's podcast, he made the erroneous claim that "millions" of young children are on hormone blockers even though a Reuters article notes that only 4,780 children have been placed on puberty blockers within the last five years.
At the time, Walsh declared that drug companies and healthcare providers have benefited financially by prescribing hormone blockers, which help delay unwanted physical changes that don't match someone's gender identity.
He insisted that in prescribing these medications, these companies are "also admitting that they have horribly disfigured and abused thousands, maybe millions of kids.”
Walsh has also attacked prominent LGBTQ+ figures, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and his husband, the author and activist Chasten Buttigieg. Last year, he accused Chasten of teaching children to prioritize the Pride flag over the American flag after Buttigieg bonded with LGBTQ+ youth during an event held ahead of Pride Month.
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