Ultra-conservative writer and media mogul Ben Shapiro is under fire for attacking World Cup champion Megan Rapinoe as an "outspoken lesbian." Shapiro took to his radio show to suggest that Rapinoe, who is also an Olympic gold medal winner, is using her celebrity to claim victimhood in an effort to make more money.
"Absolute silliness," Shapiro called the political power sports champions have in America, suggesting their free speech rights are "bad for the country" and "obnoxious," a word he used repeatedly during his diatribe.
Rapinoe has been advocating for equal pay rights for women.
Shapiro, who is anti-gay and opposed to equal rights for LGBT people, also tried to minimize the plight of LGBTQ Americans and women by comparing the African American Civil Rights Movement with that of LGBTQ people.
"We're not talking about that. We're talking about -- gay marriage is legal across the United States by Supreme Court diktat. We're talking about Megan Rapinoe is getting million dollar contracts specifically because of her sexuality, and because she's a very very good soccer player. But let's not make any mistake, if she was a very good soccer player and she were not a very outspoken lesbian, she would be getting fewer contracts because she's seen as a political figure. She's sort of Colin Kaepernick but with actual talent at her sport," he claimed, as Media Matters reported.
Ben Shapiro says Megan Rapinoe is getting soccer contracts because she's "a very outspoken lesbian" https://t.co/bSH40zM08X— Jason Campbell (@Jason Campbell) 1562775760.0
"All of this is obnoxious but we're supposed to pretend that actually she is quite charming and wonderful, that it's not obnoxious to live in the best time for women, the best time [for] lesbians, and the best time for women's soccer in the history of the world, and in the best country in the history of the world for any of those things, we're supposed to pretend that actually she is a victim and America is a terrible place so that she could make more money, presumably. Pretty gross."
Some across social media blasted Shapiro for being a "bigot," and "sexist."
Megan Rapinoe gets soccer contracts because she’s a superstar who won the Golden Ball and Golden Boot awards at the… https://t.co/3tPVDT1wVG— Adam Best (@Adam Best) 1562861759.0
You know, I’m starting to suspect this Ben Shapiro fellow might be a sexist. https://t.co/0k6VQAUnkq— Molly Jong-Fast🏡 (@Molly Jong-Fast🏡) 1562858436.0
And Ben Shapiro gets paid by advertisers in spite of the fact that he’s a very outspoken bigot. https://t.co/f9edNUHXvN— Sleeping Giants (@Sleeping Giants) 1562814561.0
Some noted his astonishing hypocrisy:
Ben Shapiro explained in 2 tweets https://t.co/ByVzkmzkw7— Fernand R. Amandi (@Fernand R. Amandi) 1562860889.0
And some just captured the true essence of Shapiro:
Ben Shapiro is the Tomi Lahren of Sean Hannitys. https://t.co/act33jZZsu— BrooklynDad_Defiant! (@BrooklynDad_Defiant!) 1562860212.0
Ben Shapiro is a stupid person's idea of a smart person.— Thor Benson (@Thor Benson) 1562860497.0
More:
Ben Shapiro, praised in the New York Times as a cutting edge intellectual, shows his seriousness by (checks notes)… https://t.co/a2bLFQq5o7— Noah Berlatsky (@Noah Berlatsky) 1562860339.0
