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Love Is Blind Transphobic, Homophobic Comments Controversy Explained
Fans are taking sides and calling out perceived biases.
There’s no end to the mess that comes with each new season of Love is Blind, and now accusations of homophobic and transphobic comments are plaguing two of season four’s participants.
Jackie Bonds ultimately ditched ex-fiancé Marshall Glaze to get together with Josh Demas, but she recently took to Instagram stories to accuse Glaze of using a transphobic slur to describe her when they were together.
“Marshall told me I looked like a [transphobic slur] that he viewed me as a project that he could turn into something,” she wrote in a text message to fellow contestant Tiffany Pennywell. “I would have never thought he would say those to me. Told me I wear too much sweats & that I need to give him more.”
Bonds repeated the accusation in another text, saying the incident happened while they were filling out marriage documents and he was “joking” about whether to select male or female, and telling her “u kinda look like a [transphobic slur].”
During the recent Love is Blind reunion episode on Netflix, which Bonds did not attend, Glaze denied using the word in question, but said he told his ex, “You know, you got a strong jawline. You coulda been a man for all I know,” during an argument.
“I felt like it was my turn to make a jab,” he said. “I thought it was a safe space because she’s coming at me, calling me out for my sexual preferences… I did not say a specific term. I did not use a derogatory word, no.”
A friend of Bonds previously leaked text messages that allegedly included her making insinuations about Glaze’s behaviors that came across to many as homophobic.
\u201cJackie confirming that she\u2019s in a relationship with Josh, telling her group chat she has to make it to the altar with Marshall for clout and being homophonic AF. It appears she has been seeing Josh throughout filming after the pods. #LoveisBlind4 #LoveIsBlind\u201d— maybe she born w bars maybe iss trauma~typo king (@maybe she born w bars maybe iss trauma~typo king) 1680685807
The back and forth of it all didn’t sit well with fans, who felt only Glaze was being called out when both of them should be.
\u201c@lexwvr Both Jackie and Marshall are wrong for their homophobic and transphobic remarks. They both should be called out and held accountable. Period.\u201d— Lex Weaver (@Lex Weaver) 1681698574
\u201cI truly cannot believe that Jackie making a historically homophobic comment towards Marshall in her text messages go absolutely no heat, but Marshall saying that Jackie has a strong jaw was labeled as Transphobic. Vanessa Lachey is trash for not addressing this\u201d— e \u2728 (@e \u2728) 1681748486
\u201cJackie saying Marshall is transphobic after she was homophobic all season like #LoveisBlind4\u201d— gabrielle alexa noel \ud83d\udc98 (@gabrielle alexa noel \ud83d\udc98) 1681820194
\u201c*Jackie and Marshall hurling transphobic/homophobic insults at each other*\n\nVanessa: and now for a sneak peak of our new show, The Ultimatum: THEM QUEERS\u201d— en la biblioteca (@en la biblioteca) 1681701505
With the reunion special over, there’s still no word on when season five of Love is Blind will hit the small screen, although the new cast has already been chosen. It’s reality TV, so they’ll definitely still be a messy bunch, but maybe with a little less -phobia mixed in this time around. We can dream.
Yes, though no further details have been announced yet.
Fans have theorized it may take place in Charlotte, North Carolina, but there is no confirmation as of yet.
Love is Blind is available on Netflix.
Rachel Kiley is presumably a writer and definitely not a terminator. She can usually be found crying over queerbaiting in the Pitch Perfect franchise or on Twitter, if not both.
Rachel Kiley is presumably a writer and definitely not a terminator. She can usually be found crying over queerbaiting in the Pitch Perfect franchise or on Twitter, if not both.
