'Pose' stars slam CNN's Chris Cuomo for pronoun gaffe - Los Angeles Times
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‘Pose’ stars slam CNN’s Chris Cuomo for pronoun joke during Equality Town Hall

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“Pose” stars Indya Moore and Angelica Ross were not pleased with CNN’s Chris Cuomo after he made an insensitive quip about gender pronouns at the network’s Equality Town Hall on Thursday.

While hosting the event aimed at promoting inclusion for the LGBTQ community, the news anchor invited California Sen. Kamala Harris to the stage, where Harris announced, “My pronouns are she, her and hers” to applause from the audience. Cuomo, apparently thrown by her intro, responded with sarcasm.

“She, her and hers?” he repeated. “Mine too,” he said, to which Harris replied simply, “All right.”

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The uncomfortable encounter lasted less than 10 seconds but sparked immediate backlash from the LGBTQ community and its allies on Twitter, who held Cuomo, known to use the pronouns he, him and his, accountable for the gaffe.

Cuomo later issued an apology for the remark and declared himself an LGBTQ ally. But a single “I’m sorry” tweet was not enough to convince Moore and Ross of his commitment to the cause.

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“I’m glad you showed yourself this way so that people can see that everywhere trans people’s conversations are gatekept by cis people our lives and issues won’t matter,” tweeted Moore, whose pronouns are they, them and theirs. “Trans people’s pain and trauma is comedic relief not just to you, but to a vast part of this country.”

On Ryan Murphy’s fluid FX drama, Moore and Ross play two of several misunderstood trans characters of color who are often subjected to discrimination and cruelty because of their queerness and race. Both are also staunch advocates for trans communities — especially those of color — in real life.

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“What you should do @ChrisCuomo is not just apologize but admit what’s behind this is YOUR ignorance,” tweeted Ross, who uses the pronouns she, her and hers and attended the town hall by invitation from Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). “You just showed you don’t understand the importance of pronouns, so how do you confidently crown yourself an ally? Learn from black & brown trans women.”

The CNN host, whose brief statement had expressed regret for his words, currently anchors the news network’s “Cuomo Prime Time,” where he sits down for one-on-one interviews with various public figures.

“PLEASE READ: When Sen. Harris said her pronouns were she her and her’s, I said mine too,” the journalist tweeted Thursday. “I should not have. I apologize. I am an ally of the LGBTQ community, and I am sorry because I am committed to helping us achieve equality. Thank you for watching our townhall.”

“Pose” recently made history at the 2019 Emmys when star Billy Porter became the first openly gay black man to win for lead actor in a drama.

FX has renewed the groundbreaking period series for a third season.

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