Glee May be Gay-Friendly, But How Does It Feel About the Transgender Community?

[Shana A]

Glee May be Gay-Friendly, But How Does It Feel About the Transgender Community?
by Kevin Collier 04/29/11 11:00 AM

http://www.tv.com/story/25731.html

Tuesday was Lady Gaga night on Glee. The episode was called "Born This Way," after the Gaga song that closed the show and is practically a manifesto of the series' theme of tolerance. (The chorus: "Don't hide yourself in regret/Just love yourself and you're set/I'm on the right track baby/I was born this way.) I mean, we saw a psychiatrist tell Emma that even though there's a stigma against people with OCD in this country, she's not alone. So it's odd that the show, which incessantly preaches tolerance, cut the song's sole reference to transgendered people.

When New Directions performed "Born This Way," Kurt started with the song's fully included spoken intro, performing it word for word. But the club sang only 12 of the 16 lines in the song's bridge. The stanza that got cut: "No matter gay, straight or bi,/lesbian, transgendered life/I'm on the right track baby/I was born to survive." Lest you have any doubt over whether it was the word "gay" that prompted the edit, Kurt sang the song while wearing a shirt that read "LIKES BOYS."