Arts & Entertainment

Laverne Cox, Janet Mock, Cher respond to leaked anti-trans memo

Celebrities weigh in on proposed civil rights protection rollback

Published

8 years ago

October 22, 2018

Mariah Cooper

Laverne Cox (Screenshot via YouTube)

Celebrities are reacting to reports that the Trump administration has proposed a government memo that would roll back protections for transgender individuals by defining gender by a person’s genitalia at birth.

Actress Laverne Cox responded to the reports of the transgender community’s civil rights being revoked with an impassioned series of tweets.

“We must not give up the fight. But in the face of this affront on my existence and the existence of my community I choose love not fear. We exist and always have,” Cox tweeted. “In indigenous cultures all over the world gender existed beyond the binary and folks who we would call trans today held sacred places in those cultures. Western colonialism drove those trans folks to the margins but we have always been here. Marginalizing trans folks is another.”

She continued: “We need the citizens of Massachusetts to 3#VoteYesOn Nov. 6 to send a strong message that you value the lives of your trans friends, family and neighbors. Trans people have been under attack by this.”

We must not give up the fight. But in the face of this affront on my existence and the existence of my community I choose love not fear. We exist and always have.

Trump Administration Eyes Defining Transgender Out of Existence https://t.co/G4rKB1mVfe

— Laverne Cox (@Lavernecox) October 21, 2018

In indigenous cultures all over the world gender existed beyond the binary and folks who we would call trans today held sacred places in those cultures. Western colonialism drove those trans folks to the margins but we have always been here. Marginalizing trans folks is another

— Laverne Cox (@Lavernecox) October 21, 2018

Example of the brutality of colonialism. This latest administration effort to legislate trans folks out of existence is yet another example of why the fight for gender equity must be intersectional and necessarily must include trans folks. Trans folks need everyone to stand with

— Laverne Cox (@Lavernecox) October 21, 2018

us in this fight, to let our government know this is not who we are. We need the citizens of Massachusetts to #VoteYesOn3 Nov. 6 to send a strong message that you value the lives of your trans friends, family and neighbors. Trans people have been under attack by this

— Laverne Cox (@Lavernecox) October 21, 2018

Cox wasn’t the only celebrity to share their outrage with their followers. Janet Mock, Cher, Chaz Bono, Kim Petras and more also tweeted their issues with the memo.

They can try all they want, but they cannot erase us.

— Janet Mock (@janetmock) October 21, 2018

Trump Administration Eyes Defining Transgender Out of Existence via @NYTimes
Fk These Ppl.Will MY SON Be Sent To INTERNMENT CAMP 2 Live with LATINO Children,& Be Kept In Cages in Places where??Cant See Them.THIS IS”HIS CODE”4,..MAKE THEM DISAPPEAR #MBS https://t.co/UrXYSo5vK5

— Cher (@cher) October 21, 2018

I can’t begin to express the rage I feel toward an administration that is trying to redefine me out of existence. Just another gift for his small minded base, terrified of the diversity that has always made America exceptional! #Vote https://t.co/OrAPEnaK9r

— Chaz Bono (@ChazBono) October 21, 2018

I feel sick to my stomach and depressed, scared, angry, exhausted https://t.co/DO9T9qYsOp

— Laura Jane Grace (@LauraJaneGrace) October 21, 2018

Please vote … Trump is so ugly … this is awful pic.twitter.com/rmglpxJHWR

— KIM PETRAS ? (@kimpetras) October 21, 2018

-Gender variant humans should sustain the right of self determination. Precolonial tribes of people all recognized the validity of varying gender identities and occupation. Gender variance has been a cultural construct for centuries before colonial rule-

— IAM (@IndyaMoore) October 21, 2018

I woke to this. I’m honestly terrified. Basically TRUMP asked every gov agency define sex as only man or woman NOT Changable. only birth sex will be valid. disputes to be settled by genetic tests. He’s already put people in charge who will approve this.https://t.co/pMDm3hzD1Z

— Peppermint (@Peppermint247) October 21, 2018

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Online Culture

Clavicular charged in alleged rape of teenage influencer

Online personality’s real name is Braden Peters

Published

2 hours ago

September 23, 2026

Joe Reberkenny

Braden Peters a.k.a. "Clavicular" (Screen capture via NBC News/YouTube)

Online personality Clavicular, whose real name is Braden Peters, has been accused of rape.

According to NBC, Aleksandra Vasilevna Mendoza, an 18-year-old influencer known online as Alorah or Alorah Ziva, accused Peters of sexual assault, and the case is making its way through the court system.

The alleged incident occurred on May 23, 2025, when Mendoza was 17.

According to a criminal complaint from the Chatham (Mass.) Police Department, Peters called her an Uber to his family’s home. Once there, he allegedly got her drunk on vodka while they livestreamed on Twitch and then raped her. His mother and grandmother were allegedly in the house.

The documents allege Clavicular committed rape, drugging a person for sexual intercourse, and procuring and providing liquor to a person under 21.

According to court documents acquired by NPR, Mendoza began communicating with Peters on Instagram, where he paid her to appear on his livestreams to help her “make her name known on social media.”

According to those documents, Peters arranged for the minor to come to Cape Cod home to participate in a videostream for his 437,000 followers on Kick, 1.2 million followers on TikTok, and more than 1 million followers on Instagram.

At his home, Peters allegedly instructed Mendoza to say she was 18 on his videostream and to claim the alcohol on camera was water instead of vodka. Mendoza said she felt peer-pressured to drink the spirit and that she became noticeably intoxicated after a couple of drinks.

The allegations go on to state that after stopping the stream, Peters and Mendoza kissed on a couch and then had sex in his bed without her consent. Mendoza said she did not receive a sexual assault forensic exam after the incident. NPR does not name alleged victims of sexual assault.

The charges come months after Mendoza sued Peters in Miami, accusing him of sexual battery in connection with the events of May 2025. The civil lawsuit also separately alleges that he injected her face with a non-FDA-approved fat-dissolving substance during a November livestream in Florida.

Peters is known for his “looksmaxxing” concept of vanity, which is at the core of his online presence. The “looksmaxxing” culture he has helped cultivate combines elements of incel culture and heterosexuality, with the stated goal of attracting the opposite sex. He has gone as far as to say he has undergone “bonesmashing,” or hitting his own face with a hammer; taken anabolic steroids to more rapidly grow muscle; and used crystal meth as an appetite suppressant.

At the same time, looksmaxxing has been described as having elements of homoeroticism, with “looksmaxxers” appearing more concerned with impressing other men than women. Peters has multiple times pointed to openly gay actor Matt Bomer as the gold standard for male facial aesthetics.

Peters’s arraignment is scheduled for Oct. 14.