Australians have rallied behind Studio 10 host Sarah Harris after she apologised on air for misgendering Elliot Page during a segment about the Canadian actor’s transition on Wednesday.
Fans praised the 39-year-old presenter for her sincere mea culpa on Thursday’s show, and urged activists to stop harassing her on social media for what was a genuine mistake.
Reacting to her apology on Facebook, several supporters said it can be hard adjusting to new pronouns and insisted Sarah had meant no harm by calling Elliot ‘she’.
Support: Australians have rallied behind Studio 10 host Sarah Harris (left, with Tristan MacManus) after she apologised on air for misgendering Elliot Page during a segment about the Canadian actor’s transition on Wednesday
One viewer wrote: ‘Really good of her to openly apologise like that. It is hard when someone you know starts going by different pronouns that you are used to and it will be quite easy to stuff up.
‘Own it, correct yourself, apologise and continue trying to use the right one and eventually you will do it [use the correct gender pronoun] out of habit.’
Another commented: ‘She apologised. I believe it was genuine. At least she’s trying and acknowledging her mistake.’
‘Noble’: Fans praised the 39-year-old presenter for her sincere mea culpa on Thursday’s show, and urged activists to stop harassing her on social media for what was a genuine mistake
Thanks for sharing: Not every response was as nuanced as this, however, and one man shared a rather unhelpful comment about society becoming ‘soft’ by caring too much about pronouns
‘The comments on this post are atrocious. She moved past it after recognising she used the wrong pronouns and correcting herself, which was noble, and then apologised,’ a third wrote.
A fourth noted: ‘Some of the comments are a bit “precious” (i.e. PC). Sarah, you did well to apologise. Please don’t take this too much to heart. It’s perfectly understandable.’
Sarah’s supporters insisted it wasn’t fair to accuse her of misgendering or ‘deadnaming’ Elliot maliciously.
Misgendering is when a trans person is referred to by their former gender pronoun; deadnaming is when a trans person is called by their former name.
One wrote: ‘I just watched the clip. Why are people getting p**sed off? It’s normal to say the wrong thing then stumble over your words. I’m sure Elliot will come across stuff like this all the time now as people transition to the change.’
Another added: ‘For f**k’s, it’s no different to someone changing their name. It isn’t offensive to call them their old name; it’s simply a habit that one needs to break.
‘People need time to adapt and in time mistakes will be made. No need for an apology.’
Not every response was as nuanced as this, however, and one man shared a rather unhelpful comment about society becoming ‘soft’ by caring too much about pronouns.
‘It was a joke. Who cares? How did we become so soft? A generation who grew up with South Park, Family Guy, Chappelle’s Show, listening to Limp Bizkit, Korn, 2Pac, Ice Cube?’
During a showbiz news segment on Wednesday’s Studio 10 about Elliot Page coming out as a transgender man, Sarah said ‘good for her’ in reference to the Juno star – instead of using the actor’s preferred pronouns ‘he’ and ‘they’.
She quickly corrected herself, stammering: ‘Good for them. Good for he. Jeez, that’s confusing already.’
She addressed the gaffe the following morning, after facing backlash on Twitter.
‘I need to apologise for my reaction that I had yesterday when you first announced the news about Elliot Page. I completely stuffed up the pronouns,’ she told viewers.
‘I got flustered and tried to make a joke and move on. Looking back that was pretty insensitive. It was a genuine mistake and I’m so sorry. Yeah, I’m just… I’m sorry. It was a brain snap.’
She continued: ‘A lot of people say “don’t apologise”, but I felt really lousy and I’d hate anyone to feel like I was attacking them in that way. It was just a moment. I’m really sorry.’
The 33-year-old Oscar-nominated actor, formerly known as Ellen Page, came out as a transgender man on social media on Tuesday morning.
Elliot, who has been married to dancer Emma Portner, 26, since 2018, began his post: ‘Hi friends, I want to share with you that I am trans, my pronouns are he/they and my name is Elliot.
‘I feel lucky to be writing this. To have arrived at this place in my life.’
Elliot, who received an Oscar nomination as best actress for the hit 2008 movie Juno, asked followers and fans for ‘patience’, admitting to being ‘scared’ of the ‘invasiveness, the hate, the jokes, and of the violence’ that may now arise.
‘My job is real, but it is also fragile,’ he said, adding: ‘The truth is, despite feeling profoundly happy right now and knowing how much privilege I carry, I am also scared.’
Elliot, who is due to begin filming the third season of Netflix’s The Umbrella Academy in February, also unveiled changes to official social media accounts, posting on Twitter under the username @TheElliotPage, and on Instagram as @elliotpage.
He thanked his loved ones for their support through his journey, expressing his ‘overwhelming gratitude’ for help in reaching the stage of feeling comfortable to ‘pursue his authentic self’.
Shortly after the actor posted the statement, wife Emma voiced her public support on Instagram, while reiterating her partner’s plea for patience.
‘I am so proud of @elliotpage. Trans, queer and non-binary people are a gift to this world,’ Emma wrote.
‘I also ask for patience & privacy [and] that you join me in the fervent support of trans life every single day. Elliot’s existence is a gift in and of itself. Shine on sweet E. Love you so much.’
She also commented on Elliot’s Instagram post, writing: ‘Love you so much, Elliot.’