Caitlyn Jenner, formerly Bruce Jenner, has received widespread support online after publicly coming forward with her new identity on Monday, but at least one celebrity fired off a transphobic comment on Twitter.
Drake Bell, the former Nickelodeon star, indicated he would refuse to acknowledge Jenner's new identity.
"Sorry...still calling you Bruce," he tweeted.
This set into motion all the usual stages of a Twitter meltdown.
There was an attempt at rationalization, in which Bell suggested it was a sign of respect.
"I'm not dissing him!" he wrote, using the pronoun that Jenner no longer uses. "I just don't want to forget his legacy! He is the greatest athlete of all time! Chill out!"
There were insults directed at those offended:
"Calm down children" he wrote.
An attempt to brush it off:
“Good thing social media has no effect on real life,” he wrote.
And finally, of course, the final stage: deletion. However, the tweets have been preserved in a number of places, including Page Six, Perez Hilton and Billboard.
Bell's reaction notwithstanding, Jenner's revelation has been met with widespread acceptance and respect, and her new twitter account already has nearly 1.7 million followers, prompting this tweet:
UPDATE June 4: Bell apologized for the remark on Twitter:
I sincerely apologize for my thoughtless insensitive remarks. I in no way meant to hurt or demean those going through a similar journey.
— Drake Bell (@DrakeBell) June 4, 2015
Although my comments were made in innocence, I deeply regret the negative effect they've had on so many.
— Drake Bell (@DrakeBell) June 4, 2015
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