On Sunday night's Last Week Tonight, host John Oliver delved deeply into the topic of transgender rights. The comic argued that those opposed to transgenderism – or even gender-neutral bathrooms – are on the wrong side of history.
Oliver whined that people should support civil rights for transgenders to preserve their own reputations: “[T]his is a civil rights issue. And if you are not willing to support transgender people for their own sake, at least do it for your own, because we've been through this before. We know how this thing ends. If you take the anti-civil rights side and deny people access to something they're entitled to, history is not going to be kind to you.”
Earlier in the segment, Oliver ripped opponents of gender-neutral bathrooms, claiming that they are fear-mongering when it comes to the potential risks they pose. In particular, the HBO personality blasted Mike Huckabee’s comments about the potential issues with those bathrooms:
But there is something inherently wrong with forcing us to listen to your f*****-up daydreams about all the sex crimes you would've committed as a teenager had you just been able to find a legal loophole. That's weird! And that baseless fear-mongering is everywhere.
Oliver also claimed that violating non-discrimination bathroom ordinances to commit an assault is “an imaginary crime” that we shouldn’t have to worry about.
The relevant portion of the transcript is below.
HBO's Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
June 28, 2015
JOHN OLIVER: No. But there is something inherently wrong with forcing us to listen to your f*****-up daydreams about all the sex crimes you would've committed as a teenager had you just been able to find a legal loophole. That's weird! And that baseless fear-mongering is everywhere.
[...]
OLIVER: Secondly, someone abusing a nondiscrimination ordinance to assault someone in a bathroom is almost unheard of. It's a borderline imaginary crime, like dragon wrestling or space bestiality. Sure, it’s terrible, but it doesn't really happen.
[...]
OLIVER: And look, this is a civil rights issue. And if you're not willing to support transgender people for their sake, at least do it for your own, because we've been through this before. We know how this thing ends. If you take the anti-civil rights side and deny people access to something, history is not going to be kind to you.
