On Christmas day, Formula One race car driver Lewis Hamilton decided to lash out at his nephew for wearing a pink dress; a fashion choice he took issue with in an Instagram post shared with 5.7 fans.
He’s since apologized, but the general consensus is it’s a little too little and a little too late.
“I’m so sad right now,” he says in the original clip.
“Look at my nephew. Why are you wearing a princess dress? Is this what you got for Christmas? Why did you ask for a princess dress for Christmas? BOYS DON’T WEAR Christmas dresses.”
Oh dear Lewis. You’ve just opened a can of worms… pic.twitter.com/fpsiNeOZrd
— Nabeela (@JustNabz) December 25, 2017
Related: The Internet is all aswirl because Justin Trudeau’s son wore a pink dress
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After his post caused no shortage of anger and outrage, Hamilton posted a series of followup tweets apologizing for his post.
“Yesterday I was playing around with my nephew and realised that my words were inappropriate so I removed the post,” he writes.
“I meant no harm and did not mean to offend anyone at all. I love that my nephew feels free to express himself as we all should. My deepest apologies for my behavior as I realize it is really not acceptable for anyone, no matter where you are from, to marginalize or stereotype anyone.
I have always been in support of anyone living their life exactly how they wish and I hope I can be forgiven for this lapse in judgement.”
https://twitter.com/LewisHamilton/status/945718243511144448?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.towleroad.com%2F2017%2F12%2Flewis-hamilton-nephew%2F
https://twitter.com/LewisHamilton/status/945718655949602823
https://twitter.com/LewisHamilton/status/945718744680206336
As Pink News reports, this apology has subsequently been called into question after Hamilton “liked” a tweet telling him not to cave to the “PC brigade”:
Hamilton also “liked” this one:
And he “liked” this:
And the Twitterverse has noticed Hamilton’s various “likes,” too:
Don't forget to share:
Bob LaBlah
Good move. It sounded to me like you were only playing with the tot but of course lonely jealous gay men would take it and run with it. This incident should be the perfect reminder for you to stay the hell off of Instagram and all other internet nonsensical websites set up for one to go babbling on and on about what is basically no ones business but your own and your family’s. Things such as family Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings really have no need to be broadcast to the world. Some things need to be kept private. And p.s. Let us have a look at that ass. I bet its cute.
inbama
I bet half the guys fitting this kid into a skirt have Grindr accounts that start off “No fats, no fems…”
Lqbtqmatchmaker
Hamilton is one of the great driver.
Xzamilloh
I’m just gonna keep saying what I’ve been saying about “apologies”: He shouldn’t have apologized, because a) this is obviously what he believes and he meant what he said, and b) the ones demanding an apology weren’t going to accept it anyway.
Maybe I’d care more if I cared more about Lewis Hamilton, and perpetually offended snowflakey liberals and the equally perpetually offended snowflakey conservatives mad about offended snowflakey liberals.
Xzamilloh
Look, I’m just better than everyone. The sooner the world accepts that, the sooner I can get some tissue for my nosebleed… thumbing it up at everyone at this altitude is wreaking havoc on my sinuses.
Donston
No matter what he believes he shouldn’t have gone after his child nephew and his family through social media. That alone showed incredible lack of tact and deserved an apology. The rest of it is not up to me. I am not his family nor someone who is the target of his rant.
Xzamilloh
Except he’s not apologizing to his nephew, he’s “apologizing” on social media. Hamilton sounded like every other ignorant male relative I was around, but my issue is people making fake apologies that equate to lip service and nothing more. And then the people who constantly demand someone apologize only to chuck it out and stay angry because they just need something to be angry about.
Like I said, he meant what he said, and I seriously doubt he had some change of heart about gender norms and roles in 24 hours.
Donston
It is a tiresome cycle: someone dumb says some dumb sh*t and everyone is appalled that they said some dumb sh*t and demands an apology. That’s why I try to talk about the context rather than all the extra sensationalism, outrage and hurt feelings. Although the outrage and whining can be annoying it usually opens up uncomfortable discussions that need to be had.
Donston
Also, it’s something he put on social media. No matter who you’re talking to or about you’re ultimately talking to the whole world. So, if he was genuinely sorry (which I doubt he was) apologizing through social media is appropriate.
prarie pup
Whether he was joking or not isn’t the main issue here–it’s his “butt-in-ski” attitude. How people raise their children (as long as the child’s health or safety isn’t endangered) is none of his business. Telling parents what they should or should not let their child do is an act of war.
Paco
Back when I was that child’s age, I would have been yelled at, spanked, humiliated and sent to my room in tears if I wore a princess dress. Certainly not giggling like this child was while having a playful moment with his uncle. The kid is pretty lucky if that is as harsh as it got for him.
Kangol
He’s clearly receiving love and affirmation from his parent(s), so Uncle Lewis’s negative comments didn’t shut him down. One thing I’ve noticed in a lot of the gender expression panic underway is that there’s almost nothing being said anymore about hetero male transvestites. There are a lot of them, too. But they’ve kind of been erased as the discussion has shifted to transgender people and non-binary/fluid gender expression people. Do hetero male transvestites also upset Lewis Hamilton? I’m curious to know.
inbama
Would you have preferred your parents had taken you to a transgender therapist, been put on hormone blockers, never experienced puberty and had your private parts removed at 17?
Paco
No, @inbama, I am not Trans. I would have preferred my parents to have allowed me to experience the innocence of childhood without being forced to adopt their beliefs on what is acceptable for how boys should play.
inbama
Sadly, sensible is hard to achieve.
We have decided to sacrifice the 80% of gender dysphoric children (who, after puberty, realize they are merely gay) for the 20% who are trans.
If you are put on hormone blockers and denied puberty, you WILL be made transgender as your brain will not complete its sexual differentiation.
Result is a lifetime of hormones, surgeries, classes on how to talk/walk like the opposite sex, sterilization and, small wonder, an outsized suicide rate.
happiness17
Paco- Back in the day there was an abundance of homophobia. Any child who displayed any sign of possibly being gay or trans would be shunned upon, humiliated and even beaten because of it. The goal was to change the child into being “normal” All it did was confuse the child even more so. Even today children are still punished for being what their parents and society in general feels is different.
Jaxton
This Lewis Hamilton races for that British ugly guy Bernie Ecclestone, doesn’t he? Hasn’t Bernie run his Grand Prix in homophobic countries throughout the world?
Note how men always seem to be OK with women wearing pants but not men wearing dresses. Double standard….
GC1985
Who watches this crap anymore anyways? And this guy…. An apology is only good when it’s geniuine. Maybe it’s best to show some self control first.
Bob LaBlah
Lord, I swear you girls need a drink and a man bad. Its sad to see how many of you on here are hellbent to show your intelligence and have no idea its your personality that is shining thru your comments. In two cases the sixty-four thousand dollar question is who is claiming to be whom. Neither sounds quite right to be the other. I pay attention to such things over the years and trust me, its getting disturbing. And to think I thought I had problems but a few of you (I honestly believe only one but its too hard to say which is the real one) have left me in the dust.
GC1985
When was the last time you had a man? Forty years ago?
Danny595
He didn’t say anything wrong and he had no reason to apologize. That boy shouldn’t have been allowed to dress up like a princess. He was trying to help, but instead of getting praised, he got attacked by shrieking losers on Twitter.
Xzamilloh
Right, he shouldn’t have been allowed to wear a dress and should have been admonished for doing so. Then, we can roll the dice on how they turn out as adults and hope they don’t develop some warped hang up that translates into them acting out repressed thoughts in violence.
You know, just because social justice warriors are annoying as all hell doesn’t mean they’re wrong all of the time, and this time, I understand the outrage and agree that it Hamilton was wrong
Vince
@Danny595. He shouldn’t be allowed? What an asinine thing to say. Says way more about you and your f*cked up issues then the kid. I hope your never allowed around any kids.
GC1985
Danny, you seem to have some serious emotional problems and issues. You are the one that needs to get help.
Heywood Jablowme
Grandpa Danny!
There’s something really strange about Grandpa Danny595. He claims to be 23 years old, or maybe 24 by now, but he always sounds very, very old-time. He’s like a “steampunk” living in an alternate-universe 19th century where they don’t have cars or airplanes yet but they do have Twitter, Queerty and same-sex marriage (although of course he only votes for politicians who HATE s/s marriage and want to get rid of it!). Grandpa Danny wears a derby and a celluloid collar. Grandpa Danny is a humorless villain in an Oscar Wilde play.
GC1985
Danny was 24. When Roy Moore was decades ago.
irbaboon
Man, that guy is an @hole, and not the good kind either
Lvng1Tor
Ok, let’s be real. He thought he was being a real man by shaming his nephew and putting it online. He wasn’t just having fun with him. It is a credit to his parent’s (like @Kangol) stated. He got backlash because he was an idiot who attempted to put a child down, insulting him publicly. He and so many other celebs live a breath by promoting themselves online but with that comes crapstorms when you do something stupid. The blowback was warranted. Ya put stupid sh!t online, expect people to respond and it isn’t always what you thought you would get. Some of the responses are appropriate some are over the top ridiculous in their bile against, some don’t get it and some are over the top blind support because of their hate for “the other side”. Just look at the crap spewed in this comment section (ever comment section) on Queerty. Some are here to air their own personal damage, some are here just to cause damage and some are here for real discourse.
In the end, I thought his apology was actually quite good. What matters is how he treats his nephew and other people from now on. If it’s lip service, he’ll f up again and the “internet” will once again go in. If not, good for him.
miserylovedme24
After watching the original video, I’m really not getting the outrage. The way he said it to his nephew seemed to be in a very playful joking way, not like he was disgusted. This absolutely seems to be the definition of PC gone wild. Let’s save our outrage for situations that are actually offensive.
Donston
Once again, the problem is what you share on social media. You can’t be a famous or semi famous person saying whatever through social media and not expect a reaction no matter what your intentions are. And homophobia and obsession with hetero and gender normalcy can all be very casual and need to be checked. It’s probably more harmful than blatant hatred. He may have said it in a joking manner, but it’s pretty obvious he meant what he said. Whether you feel it was worth the outrage is one thing. But you have to understand how what you put out there will be perceived and be willing to live with that.
Xzamilloh
Some things can be called out without you just dismissing it as “PC gone wild” and I have gone on record many a time on here crap talking SJW PC BS ABCDEFG. But, like I have said before, whether the words are spoken with fluffy pillows or spewing acid, the intent is what matters, not how it is said. Lewis Hamilton was obviously being serious and that “lol” manner of speaking does nothing to change that, which is why he put out that fake ass apology that I honestly don’t think he should have put out.
This is not PC gone wild… you’d think we could all agree that putting hangups on kids should be off limits, huh?
Kangol
Let’s put it this way. He’s shaming a little kid who’s enjoying himself on Christmas. He’s telling the child what he’s doing wrong, screaming it even, when there is nothing wrong with the little boy putting on a dress and waving a wand and being a princess. The child likes it, his parents are OK with it, but his uncle, who he probably looks up to, is trying to make him feel bad for being who he is.
Children can be harmed by negative comments, lack of acceptance, etc. Especially children who are in any way different from what is considered the social norm. If you don’t believe me, talk to any reputable child psychologist, or even a trained psychologist or psychiatrist of any sort. You’re an adult, so you can tell this dude to f*ck off. The little kid cannot, but what’s clear is that his parent(s) love and affirm him enough that it didn’t shut him down, as such comments do to so many children all over the globe.
chris33133
All things considered, wouldn’t it have been smarter to not post snarky put-downs of any-aged kids on social media and to have had this conversation, in private, with the kid’s parents?
I can understand family having concerns about kids’ not hewing to socially-approved gender roles; we’re just having a broader conversation about that stuff amongst the gay-etc. community. So talk it over as mature adults; I’m sure the parents have discussed this between themselves.
HOWEVER, let’s talk about the abominable fashion sense displayed on that video. Where was the fabulous gay uncle who helps everyone put together a holiday wardrobe? 🙂
remyfacade
I don’t know what’s worst his BS apology, or ppl taking what he said seriously. You can tell by his voice, his snickering and the fact that the kid was laughing that he wasn’t serious about him having the dress. he only apologized because it was easier than tell all you ppl who loved to be fake outraged that he was just joking.
Bwhiff
The only thing this guy should be apologizing for is apologizing.
I’m not uptight or a prude about what others do, but I do have an issue with all the PC BS.
Men are men and women are women. I have no problem with there being a line of demarcation between the two.
That being said, if someone wants to let their little kids dress in a cross-gender manner let em. “Not my monkey, not my circus” as some say. I’m not terribly interested in policing anyone but myself.
Personally, I don’t cotton to the idea of little boys cross-dressing before they are old enough to understand their choices and make an informed decision about how they wish to present themselves.
Yes, I am unashamedly old school, but I also understand that I am not the standard bearer for how others govern themselves. I really dislike seeing manly who are masculine nor do I care for effeminate men, but I understand this to be my personal preference and would never attempt to dictate or belittle another person’s decision as to who they feel themselves to be.
GC1985
If you don’t care for it, stop attacking people who are. I’m genderfluid and don’t care what you think.
Bwhiff
Sentence Correction!!
I really dislike seeing women who are masculine nor do I care for effeminate men, but I understand this to be my personal preference and would never attempt to dictate or belittle another person’s decision as to who they feel themselves to be.
happiness17
Lewis Hamilton? Before I read this article I’d never heard of him before. He’s probably a one hit wonder. The only reason he apologized was because of the public outcry against him for making such a cruel remark. Just because he apologized to save face it doesn’t change how he feels.
GayEGO
Good move! People make mistakes and acknowledging them and doing the right thing is forgivable.
jcoberkrom
The most important thing here is that he learns from his nephew. Maturity is being yourself. Sometime is takes balls to do this and apparently his nephew has bigger balls then he does.