Drew Afualo is speaking out amid viral attention on TikTok.
The 30-year-old The Comment Section with Drew Afualo podcast host and Loud: Accept Nothing Less Than the Life You Deserve author spoke out following backlash as an old podcast clip resurfaced on the platform, sparking intense debate and criticism.
What Did Drew Afualo and E.R. Fightmaster Originally Say?
During a The Comment Section with Drew Afualo podcast episode with E. R. Fightmaster originally posted on April 2, 2025, called “ALL TWINS ARE BAD ft. E.R. Fightmaster,” the two were discussing transphobia and the experience of womanhood.
“My truest thought on this is that I think that trans women have a more beautiful understanding of what womanhood is,” E.R. said, to which Drew said: “I agree.”
E.R. went on to say: “Unfortunately the programming for cis women is, it’s kind of sad sometimes. Actually no, your womanhood is not your role. Your womanhood is not your status in society, and your womanhood is not your ability to be sexually assaulted.”
“This trans debate that’s like centering all on well like if a quote unquote man in a dress is in a bathroom, he will rape me. I’m like okay, well then it sounds like the problem that we have is that men are going to rape and women are fearing rape their whole lives. And when you talk to trans women about their womanhood, they talk about it like…it almost gets me choked up. They talk about it in such this like beautiful expansive way of, like it’s this feeling I always had. It’s this truth I’ve always known. It’s the most beautiful parts of me. It’s my softest self. And I don’t feel that from cis women right now because I think the propaganda is so strong.”
The conversation inspired a lot of outrage and response videos for several reasons, including the fact that trans women were not included in the discussion, the comparison between trans and cis women’s “understanding of what womanhood is,” and specifically E.R. saying “womanhood is not your ability to be sexually assaulted.”
There have also been many videos in defense of Drew and E.R.‘s conversation, and the two both spoke out with response videos.
What Did Drew Afualo Say in Response?
Drew made two videos in response to the ongoing debate.
In the first video, she said: “That you’re pretending to give a f–k now means that you guys saw one alt-right, MAGA loving creator make a video espousing TERF rhetoric, and now you want to get clicks and likes too, which means you didn’t go and watch the episode, you didn’t do any of your own research, and that’s embarrassing. So I’ll go ahead and catch you up.”
“The conversation being had is about how trans women most often times identify with femininity and womanhood, sometimes even better than cis women do. An entire discussion to it. Maybe you should go watch it before you pretend to get mad. Either way, saying it’s misogynistic to agree with a trans woman on what it means to be a woman and then in your defense of that talking point, saying things like ‘they don’t know what periods feel like’ or ‘they don’t know what childbirth feels like’ is really f–king stupid and embarrassing for multiple reason. Overarching though, bigoted and transphobic. Ironically, though, it’s also misogynistic. Reducing womanhood down to your uterus and what it does is quite literally a pillar In misogyny, that is quite literally a tenant of patriarchy. Reducing women down to being able to have periods and create babies is a huge misogynistic talking point. Weaponizing it to discredit and invalidate trans women also makes you a transphobe. Believing in feminism unless trans women are included makes you a TERF.”
“TERF stands for trans exclusive radical feminist. JK Rowling. Ever heard of her? That’s what she is, and that’s what you sound like when you say s–t like that. All of that to say. What’s even funnier about these ridiculous videos being made mad at me is that E.R. is not a man. E.R. was assigned female at birth. E.R. is a non-binary lesbian. E.R. knows all about periods because E.R. has had them before. You guys really need to work on taking 15 seconds and trying to go viral off of it. It’s f–king embarrassing and it’s annoying. My stance on supporting trans people has been consistent through the f–king years. If you followed me for real, you should f–king know that my feminism is intersectional, unlike a lot of women who claim to be feminist when they make videos like that. This entire conversation is stupid, bigoted, and transphobic. If you don’t like that I support trans women with my whole f–king chest, unfollow me then, bitch. It’s imperative cis women support trans women. For f–king real. Because I know I do. Thanks y’all, bye.”
Days later, Drew shared another video.
“Hey, y’all, wanted to come on here and clear up some stuff,” she began in the second video, as she named several trans friends she’s spoken to, and explained that she’s tagged them in the caption.
“What they’ve shared with me is that the biggest issue and critique they have with all of this is, first of all, that trans women are taking the absolute brunt of all of this. At the end of this entire discourse, trans women are being harmed and targeted, and I’m the metaphorical gun pointing at them. And the main critique that they have shared with me is that there should have been a trans woman in the room if you’re going to talk about trans women’s experiences. Which is extremely fair to say, obviously, in the context of the situation.”
“E.R. was trying to talk about how TERF rhetoric is specifically targeting trans women, obviously, and weaponizing a very real fear that cis women also deal with. And the entire intention behind the conversation was obviously to have an open discussion about trans rights, which even E.R. has said themselves they probably could have worded better. I think if you watch the full episode, you can understand it a little bit better, at least what they were trying to say.”
“But all that being said, I have expressed to all of the women that I already mentioned publicly and privately that I am so incredibly sorry to the trans women who are now being targeted because of this entire discourse. That is not something that should have ever happened, especially when they were not involved. As far as speaking to the perspective of womanhood, I’m just gonna tell y’all what I think. I feel like, personally, trans women have a much more beautiful outlook on womanhood than myself. The keyword being than myself. You don’t have to agree with that. The reason why I feel that way, though, is because, for me, a lot of my womanhood has been rooted in my fear and anger towards the systemic oppression that we face, towards the violence that we suffer at the hands of men. So my perception of my womanhood has been rooted in suffering a lot, and finding community with trans people, and more specifically trans women, has completely shifted how I see womanhood. It has added color and life to what I perceive to be endurance, if that makes sense,” Drew said.
“What women have to endure, both cis and trans, is a lot, and it is heavy, and it is hard, but it is also so beautiful. I know that love is real, because I’ve been loved by women, both cis and trans. And that is how I feel about the perception of my womanhood personally. Again, you don’t have to feel that way. But all of that being said, I appreciate my trans friends coming to me and talking to me about this and having this discussion with me as someone who is a staunch and steadfast ally. Obviously, y’all know that I know that I will continue to grow and evolve in my advocacy and the way I can show up for trans people and trans women specifically. But to everyone that is being a TERF, you are not welcome on my page. My feminism includes trans women. I do not weigh one over the other. I weigh cis and trans women the same, and I will continue to fight for both cis and trans women. Your feminism is not intersectional. It does not help all women. And just to reiterate, I’m so sorry again to all the trans women that are being affected by this. That is not something I ever wanted to happen, and I’m sorry that it did. Anyways, that’s it. Make sure y’all follow all the people I tagged. Thanks y’all. Love you. Bye!”
What Did E.R. Fightmaster Say About the Backlash?
“I’ve been given the chance to clarify a point and I’m so grateful for it,” E.R. began.
“If when you make an argument for excluding trans women from womanhood, you focus on the bathroom debate, i.e. like trans women are biological males and if you allow a biological male into a bathroom with a biological female, there is a guaranteed risk of sexual violence, then you are equating womanhood with the inevitability of being sexual assaulted and you are equating manhood with the inevitability of sexually assaulting a woman.”
“If you believe that it’s a guarantee that allowing a biological male into the bathroom with women is going to lead to sexual assault, then your problem is with men. It is not with trans women. Trans women make up a very minuscule percentage of biological males. So if you are focusing on them instead of the perpetrators of rape culture, you might be a transphobe or you might have been cleverly distracted by a power structure that benefits from you not addressing it head on.”
“Womanhood is a beautiful and expansive thing that blooms far beyond its relationship to oppression and when we have these debates, we make womanhood all about sexual assault That was my point, it was poorly made and I’m sorry for that. Cis women lose nothing by supporting and loving trans women. They lose everything by not addressing rape culture for exactly what the f–k it is. Drew Afualo is a friend of mine and an icon and I love her, and she does a lot of work to f–king take to task and shut down the men in your comment section that you protect when you shift the argument from rape culture to trans womanhood.”
“It’s totally okay for you to have a critique about my whiteness. I f–king get it. Whiteness often sucks. But if you have a bunch of thoughts and opinions on Drew because you don’t like her tone or her behavior or her existence, I do wonder if it’s just racism. Long story short, if you feel the need to address Drew with anything other than delighted positivity shut the f–k up, and if you feel the need to constantly exclude trans women i want you to pause for a second and question whether your anger is at this tiny group of marginalized people or if it is at a patriarchal system run by men that seems to be trying to make womanhood unlivable. I’m sorry to anybody I offended while trying to explain this with anything less than eloquence. It’s a tricky subject and I’m covered in cat hair. I just realized that there’s cats all around me. Kind of classic. I’m gonna get dragged for that one. F–k!”
Who Is E.R. Fightmaster?
E.R. Fightmaster is a nonbinary actor, writer and musician best known for playing Dr. Kai Bartley on Grey’s Anatomy. They have also appeared in projects including Shrill, Work in Progress and Survival of the Thickest, and release music as one-half of the indie rock duo Twin and solo music under the name Fightmaster.
What Does TERF Mean?
An acronym meaning Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminist. A shorthand to describe one cohort of feminists who self-identify as radical and are unwilling to recognize trans women as sisters, unlike other feminists who do. – Boston Medical Center
Who Else Has Spoken Out About the Debate?
Many prominent figures on TikTok have weighed in on the debate. Check out the videos inside…
Posted To:Drew Afualo E.R. Fightmaster Influencers TikTok
