VANCOUVER, CANADA: In a social media post that has caused a widespread backlash, Dr Katja Thieme, a journalism professor at the University of British Columbia, made a shocking comment suggesting that children should be exposed to adult genitalia to prepare them for the possibility of encountering naked transgender individuals.

The comment was part of a scathing criticism of swimmer Riley Gaines, a vocal advocate for women's rights in sports and a leading voice against the inclusion of transgender athletes in women's competitions.

Controversial commentary

The controversy began when Thieme came across a video of Gaines discussing her experience of competing against transgender swimmer Lia Thomas. In response, Thieme launched a lengthy Twitter thread, attacking Gaines for her stance and using inflammatory language. "Hey, want to know one of my all-time excellent parenting ideas? Let. Little. Children. See. Penises. And. Vulvas. Of. Various. Ages. And. Sizes. In. A. Casual. Normalized. Totally. Safe. Way," Thieme tweeted. She continued, "The world will thank you for it. And so will those children when they grow up."

In the same thread, Thieme accused Gaines of being a transphobe and disparaged her emotional reaction to racing against Thomas. Gaines had previously competed against Thomas at the NCAA championship and expressed feeling disadvantaged, stating that it felt like going into the race with her hands tied behind her back. "Gaines gets tearful about the emotional effect it had on her that Thomas was holding the trophy which she had also won. That’s just whiny. What a sore not-even-loser," Thieme tweeted last month.

Who is Katja Thieme?

Dr Katja Thieme is a professor of journalism at the University of British Columbia who specializes in analyzing contemporary and historical Canadian writing through a rhetorical and genre-theoretical lens. With an MA in art history from Universität Leipzig, Germany, an MA in English from the University of British Columbia (UBC), and a PhD in English language studies, also from UBC, she possesses a strong academic background. Additionally, she has studied at Carleton University in Ottawa. In her previous research, she delved into the discourse of the Canadian women's suffrage movement during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, providing valuable insights into this crucial historical period.

Dr Thieme's research interests extend to various aspects, including genre theory, forms of public address in social and political movements in Canada, discourse analysis of research writing, and late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Canadian literature. Her work sheds light on important aspects of Canadian literary history and contributes significantly to the understanding of rhetorical strategies employed in various socio-political contexts.

Thieme's perspective on anti-trans activism

The professor further claimed that incidents involving women uncomfortable with encountering transgender individuals in locker rooms fuel "anti-trans activism." Thieme described a hypothetical scenario where a teenage girl claims to have seen a trans person in the women's change room, and her anti-trans parents take action, leading to protests and meetings, writing, "Teenage girl on the swim team sees or claims to have seen a trans person in the nude in the women’s change room. Her anti-trans parent or parents kick into high gear. They lean on coaches: Tell trans folk to change elsewhere. Coach says, no, we can’t, that’s discriminatory. They lean on the club admin: Send a warning message to all members that trans folk are using these facilities. Admin says, hell no, that’s crazy and would be very wrong. They contact Riley Gaines or other transphobes of their choice, they organize protests, events, meetings, hearings, and whatnot."

Social media outrage

Thieme subsequently faced a major backlash on social media and has since turned her Twitter profile private.

"Here is UBC journalism professor Dr. Katja Thieme saying children should be exposed to adult genitalia to prepare them for seeing naked transgender individuals in locker rooms," one tweeted, attaching a screengrab of Thieme's thread.

"@Katja_Thieme, I do believe that is the very definition of #grooming - exposing children to increasing amounts of nudity, sexuality, or sexual ideas in order to desensitize them and prime them to become easy victims. You should probably do more than locking down your Twitter account. You should probably just deactivate it," another wrote.

"This is simply sexualizing children at an age when they aren’t yet able to understand these things. It’s immoral, perverted, and creepy AF. Get some help 'Dr,'" someone else offered.

"Imagine actually being a woman or girl who DOES NOT CONSENT TO HAVING MEN PARADE NAKED IN FRONT OF THEM. We call that sexual abuse, we call that misogyny, most of all we call that PREDATORY," another chimed in.

Riley Gaines' activism

The controversy surrounding transgender athletes has been a contentious issue, and Gaines has been vocal in her opposition to President Biden's proposal to allow transgender student-athletes to compete according to their chosen gender. Biden's planned change would prohibit schools from imposing blanket bans on trans athletes in kindergarten through eighth grade but would give high schools the authority to assess fairness and potentially ban trans athletes, particularly trans girls who have gone through male puberty.

Gaines has been an outspoken supporter of women's rights in sports and has publicly endorsed Ron DeSantis in the 2024 race for the White House, after previously supporting former President Donald Trump.