Florida Republican Webster Barnaby apologises after calling trans people ‘mutants’ and ‘demons’

Republican politician Webster Barnaby has apologised after he called trans people “demons” and “mutants” during a legislative hearing for an anti-trans bill. 

Florida state representative Barnaby, 63, made the bizarre remarks at a committee hearing for a bill which would reportedly criminalise trans people using bathrooms that don’t align with the sex they were assigned at birth.

Barnaby, who was born in England and refers to himself as a conservative Christian, defended the bill before launching into a rant comparing the trans community to X-Men, characters from Marvel comics.

X-Men features mutant superheroes, and is often seen as a metaphor for outsiders or people rejected by society.

“I’m looking at society today and it’s like I’m watching an X-Men movie,” Barnaby said during the debate.

“When you watch the X-Men movies, it’s like we have mutants living among us on planet Earth… we have people that live among us today [who] are happy to display themselves as if they were mutants from another planet.

“The Lord rebuke you, satan, and all of your demons and all of your imps who parade before us.”

He later apologised for his comment, then tweeted that he stood by his “entire statement, including my apologies”. 

Florida Republican Rep. Webster Barnaby directly compared trans people to mutants in X-Men and called the trans people, including children, present in the room "demons and imps."

This was during debate for HB1421 that would criminalize trans people using bathrooms. pic.twitter.com/y5VsCKeAfJ

— Alejandra Caraballo (@Esqueer_) April 10, 2023

After Barnaby’s comments, Florida Democrat Kristen Arrington stepped in to applaud the trans activists in the audience for their “bravery”, and explain that she was “thrown” by her colleague’s remarks.

“I see you, hear you, understand and love you,” Arrington said. “Definitely, I’m still a little bit thrown off from the last comments and want to let you all know that there are many here that understand and support you.”

The bill was later approved by the committee, and is now headed to a vote by the Florida house. 

Also known as the Safety in Private Spaces act, the bill is reportedly one of 10 pieces of anti-LGBTQ legislation being considered in the state, with bans on gender-affirming care for trans young people, and bans on public drag performances also being advanced.

This follows 2022’s divisive “Don’t Say Gay” bill being signed into law, banning the discussion of LGBTQ+ identity in most Florida classrooms. 

The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) has said that it is tracking more than 470 anti-LGBTQ+ bills advancing across the United States, with more than 25 “bathroom” bills filed, and 40 anti-drag performance bills introduced.

“More than 190 of those bills would specifically restrict the rights of transgender people, the highest number of bills targeting transgender people in a single year to date,” the HRC said.