NEVER TWEET

‘Handmaid’s Tale’ Author Slammed Over Gender Tweet

Margaret Atwood shared another writer’s op-ed that asked, “Why can’t we say woman any more?”

Margaret Atwood, the celebrated author of feminist dystopian novel The Handmaid’s Tale, angered some of her fans this week when she tweeted out an op-ed by another writer titled, “Why can’t we say ‘woman’ anymore?” While Atwood did not post a comment about the Toronto Star column, her followers saw her tweet as an endorsement of the message, which argued against gender-neutral language. Replies ranged from “Welp, that’s an unfollow,” to claims that she was being transphobic to mocking comments like, “Oh no you’re right I just tried to say it and a bunch of non-binary people stormed into my apartment and made me throw out my dresses.” Atwood did not back down, later tweeting that the op-ed author, Rosie DiManno, is “not a terf,” the acronym for trans-exclusionary radical feminist.