Drag Race star Bimini hits out at Tories for using trans people as ‘political cattle’
Drag Race star Bimini hits out at Tories for using trans people as ‘political cattle’ in powerful speech (Burak Cingi/Redferns via Getty Images)
Drag Race legend Bimini Bon Boulash has lambasted the Tories for using transgender people as “political cattle” after Rishi Sunak’s anti-trans comments at his party’s conference last week.
The prime minister was widely condemned after he claimed British people are being “bullied” into believing that “people can be any sex they want to be”.
The PM told fellow Conservatives: “A man is a man and a woman is a woman. That’s just common sense.”
Hitting back, non-binary icon Bimini accused the party of using transgender people as a “political football”.
On stage at the Werq The World event at London’s O2 on Sunday (8 October), they said: “How dare you use the lives of people as political cattle, political football, for your own agenda?
“Creating this fear-mongering and hysteria against trans people is disgusting.”
Welling up with tears, Bimini continued: “One of my brothers is trans… we are growing up at a time where division is worse than ever against people that aren’t a f**king threat to anyone, they just want to live their lives.”
Bimini said those spouting anti-trans talking points often claim they’re simply “protecting women” – however, they said people should instead turn their attention to the 56 MPs who are reportedly facing claims of sexual misconduct.
Before calling on LGBTQ+ allies for support, Bimini added defiantly: “Rishi Sunak, f**k you. We need to celebrate difference and understand compassion as opposed to hate and division.”
Bimini’s speech comes just days after the Home Office admitted that a sharp rise in hate crimes against trans people could be fuelled, in part, by anti-trans comments made by politicians.
In a brief outlining new hate-crime figures for the UK, the Home Office said trans people had been “heavily discussed by politicians, the media and on social media” during the past year, which, it said, “may have led to an increase in these offences”.
According to government statistics, transphobic hate crimes rose by 11 per cent in England and Wales, to 4,732 recorded offences, in the 12 months to March 2023.
Last year, figures showed a 56 per cent increase in transphobic hate crimes, with 4,355 recorded offences.
