Elliot Page — the transgender star formerly known as actress Ellen Page — is taking aim at state legislation regarding transgender kids, claiming the new laws will ultimately be responsible for the “death of children.”
In an interview with Vanity Fair magazine, the formerly female star also claimed to have experienced a gender epiphany at an early age: “I was a little kid, absolutely, 100%, I was a boy.”
Elliot Page spoke to Vanity Fair in advance of an Oprah Winfrey interview that is set to stream Friday on Apple TV+.
“The backlash right now is so intense. But the rhetoric coming from anti-trans activists and anti-LGBTQ activists—it’s devastating. These bills are going to be responsible for the death of children. It is that simple,” Page said.
Watch below:
Page was referring to a new law in Arkansas, as well as legislation in several other states, that would bar children from receiving irreversible hormone treatment and sex-change operations, as well as medication including puberty blockers.
Proponents of the legislation argue it will protect children from making permanent changes to their bodies. Transgender activists claim that such medical treatment represents vital healthcare for trans children.
Elliot Page told Vanity Fair that speaking out against these laws became a personal mission.
“It just felt like, Okay, the GOP basically wants to destroy the lives of trans kids and stop the Equality Act. How do you not use this platform?”
The Hollywood star recounted early experiences with gender dysphoria.
“I knew I was a boy when I was a toddler,” the Oscar-nominated Juno star said. “I was writing fake love letters and signing them ‘Jason.’ Every little aspect of my life, that is who I was, who I am, and who I knew myself to be. I just couldn’t understand when I’d be told, ‘No, you’re not. No, you can’t be that when you’re older.'”
Page added: “Now I’m finally getting myself back to feeling like who I am, and it’s so beautiful and extraordinary, and there’s a grief to it in a way.”
In December, the former Ellen Page announced her gender transition and preferred pronouns in an Instagram post.
“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 be here. To have arrived at this place in my life,” Page wrote.
The Canadian-born actress shot to fame in the 2007 movie Juno, playing a pregnant teen who chooses to have her baby. The role earned Page an Academy Award nomination for lead actress.
Page later appeared in the hit movie Inception and currently stars in the Netflix series The Umbrella Academy. She also appeared in two X-Men movies as Kitty Pride.
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