Sports Illustrated is under fire for transgender swimsuit covers

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sports illustrated has come under criticism for featuring Kim Petras, a transgender pop star, on one of its covers for the magazine’s annual swimsuit issue.

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Petras was revealed as SI cover models for this year’s edition alongside Martha Stewart, Megan Fox and Brooks Nader. But some readers took to social media to compare Petras’ performance to Bud Light’s partnership with transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney last month.

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“That’s a man,” said Kingsley Cortes, Chair of the Young Republicans in Washington, DC, wroteSharing a recording of heart to break Singer cover.

“Kim Petras is not there because of her popularity with SI’s readership, but because the SI editorial team despises her readership, just as Bud Light management despises its customer base,” one Twitter user meant. “It really is pure class contempt. ‘Ha ha, those stupid beer-drinking SI readers!’”

“It’s a form of mind rape,” dismissed another reader. “The goal is to get straight men to create sexual desire in other men…if you don’t like it, you’re the bad guy.”

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One social media user hinted that SI would still have plenty of unsold editions and referenced what’s happening to Bud Light’s sales after the beer brand ran its promotion with trans TikTok personality Mulvaney last month .

“I guess you didn’t get Bud Light’s hint that men are done with it [shit emoji],” They write.

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Several people questioned Petras’ inclusion in an edition that has showcased feminine beauty in the past.

“If you are an adult and want to identify as a different gender, be my guest, but the recent trend for companies to highlight trans women instead of biological women and give top awards/places is more than concerning.” one person wrote. “Why are biological women once again being replaced by biological men in these spaces? And where are all the feminists who have championed this cause for decades? This is a targeted agenda…”

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But Petras’ involvement in the issue drew some support on Twitter.

““You’re only mad because she’s hotter than you – and less bitter.” one person snapped.

“Kim is beautiful, sexy, super curvy, has the best music and style. “Someone is VERY jealous and had to attack.” another supporter cheered. “Obviously she doesn’t care about you or your opinion.”

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Petras told S.I She was “excited” to appear as one of the magazine’s cover stars.

“I was so excited when I got the call to be there sports illustrated. It’s very iconic and a lot of very iconic people have done it before, so it’s a big dream come true for me,” she told the outlet. “I was definitely nervous and I was like, ‘Can I do this? But now that we’re doing it, I feel like we can,” she says told S.I in an accompanying interview.

“I hope people take away from this that I look really hot sports illustrated is cool.”

But the 30-year-old Grammy said that despite the “huge confidence boost” she was nervous about putting herself in such a big spotlight, even though her gender identity only plays a small role in her self-image.

“It’s definitely a scary time to be transgender in America,” Petras said. “I always try to remember that everything I do is definitely not about being transgender. It’s part of me, but there are so many other parts of me.”

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By choosing Petras alongside Fox, Stewart and Nader SI swimsuit Editor-in-Chief MJ Day said the publication hopes its decisions will help readers envision a “world without restrictions.”

“There is no subject [to this year’s issue] “Rather, there’s a vision, a feeling, a hope that women can live in a world where they don’t have inner or outer limitations,” Day said. “But the absence of a theme doesn’t mean it is [these women] do not share certain common characteristics. They are constantly evolving.”

Petras made headlines earlier this year when she performed a provocative rendition of his hit song alongside non-binary pop star Sam Smith Unholy at the Grammy Awards.

Bathed in red and wearing a top hat adorned with devil horns, Smith marched across the stage surrounded by red-robed worshipers while Petras sang her part of the song in a cage while a group of dancers in satanic headgear cavorted around them.

“This…is…evil,” Republican Senator Ted Cruz tweeted as he denounced the show, linking to a post by conservative political commentator Liz Wheeler, who wrote, “Don’t run the culture wars they say . Meanwhile, demons teach your children to worship Satan. I could vomit.”

mdaniell@postmedia.com