The classic ’80s rock song “We’re Not Gonna Take It” has been dropped from this year’s San Francisco Pride Parade & Celebration, and performing artist Dee Snider will no longer take the stage due to a tweet he wrote questioning radical transgender activism.
Local San Francisco news outlet KRON4 reported that the Twisted Sister song was going to be the “unofficial rallying cry” of this year’s event, but now, neither Snider nor the song will be showcased.
The drama started Sunday when KISS frontman Paul Stanley posted a lengthy statement calling normalizing gender reassignment surgery on children “a sad and dangerous fad.” Stanley went on to say that “many children who have no real sense of sexuality or sexual experiences get caught up in the ‘fun’ of using pronouns and saying what they identify as.”
The statement drew attention from both sides of the debate, with some prominent musicians and activists weighing in. On Monday, Snider shared his thoughts on Stanley’s message.
“You know what? There was a time where I ‘felt pretty’ too. Glad my parents didn’t jump to any rash conclusions! Well said, [Paul Stanley],” he replied to the original statement.
You know what? There was a time where I "felt pretty" too. Glad my parents didn't jump to any rash conclusions! Well said, @PaulStanleyLive https://t.co/G80uNyzD7M
— Dee Snider🇺🇸🎤 (@deesnider) May 1, 2023
The festival released a statement indicating it was parting ways with Snider because of the tweet.
“San Francisco Pride was on the cusp of announcing Twisted Sister’s ‘We’re not gonna take it’ as the unofficial rallying cry of this year’s SF Pride Parade & Celebration, with the band’s frontman Dee Snider performing the song on our center stage. Dee has always been a vocal supporter of LGBTQ+ rights,” the statement began.
“However, when we were notified about the tweet in which Dee expressed support for Kiss’s Paul Stanley’s transphobic statement, we were heartbroken and angry. The message perpetuated by that tweet casts doubt on young trans people’s ability to self-identify their gender,” it continued.
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The statement went on, “Transgender people, particularly transgender women and children of color, are disproportionately affected by hate and violence. And with transphobia proliferating and becoming more and more enshrined in law throughout the country — we have to stand up for the most impacted among us.”
“We have mutually agreed to part ways, but appreciate Dee seeing this as a teachable moment and a reminder that even allies need to be educated to ensure that they are not casually promoting transphobia,” it concluded.