Bette Midler is speaking up to clarify her comments after being met with criticism for her statement in the wake of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe V. Wade.
In a tweet on July 4, Midler wrote:
"WOMEN OF THE WORLD! We are being stripped of our rights over our bodies, our lives and even of our name. They don't call us 'women' anymore; they call us 'birthing people' or 'menstruators,' and even 'people with vaginas!' Don't let them erase you! Every human on earth owes you!."
Within minutes, the actress, singer, and comedian was under fire from followers, accusing her of excluding transgender individuals who need abortion care. Midler was quickly labeled a "TERF"—a "trans-exclusionary radical feminist"—amid angry tweets and calls to boycott Midler's upcoming Hocus Pocus sequel for Disney+.
"The term 'pregnant people' includes pregnant women & also people who are pregnant but are not women," wrote cosmologist Katie Mack in a tweet of her own, addressing the issue with Midler's statement. "It doesn't in any way erase/deny women; it's just more inclusive. I am a woman. I have friends who are not women but can get pregnant. Language that includes them doesn't hurt me."
"It Wasn't About That": Midler Clarifies Comments
Following the negative reception to her initial statement, Midler took to Twitter again on Tuesday to clarify.
"PEOPLE OF THE WORLD! My tweet about women was a response to this fascinating and well-written piece in the NYT on July 3rd. There was no intention of anything exclusionary or transphobic in what I said; it wasn't about that," Midler wrote, including a link to the New York Times article by Pamela Paul.
"It was about the same old shit women — ALL WOMEN — have been putting up with since the cavemen. Even then, men got top billing," she added.
The actress is just the latest on the list of celebrities who have been vocal about the Supreme Court's decision to overturn the ruling, which guaranteed a constitutional right to abortion care. Full House alum Jodie Sweetin made the news when she was shoved by a Los Angeles police officer during a protest on June 26; Stranger Things star Maya Hawke took to The Tonight Show to make a bold statement—"F**k the Supreme Court."
Midler will reprise her role as witchy Winifred Sanderson in Hocus Pocus 2, premiering September 30 on Disney+.