Former Counting On star Derick Dillard seems unable to stop his bigoted social media attacks on trans teen TV star Jazz Jennings.
Fortunately, Jazz doesn’t care what Derick thinks, which is what the kids call a big mood.
But even though Jazz is doing her level best to ignore his hate, Derick is firing back and doubling down on his claim that Jazz’s very existence is some form of child abuse.
Derick Dillard still doesn’t have a job, and some wonder if that might be why he has so much extra time to tweet hateful things about Jazz Jennings and the trans community.
In a recent interview, Jazz, who underwent gender confirmation surgery known as bottom surgery in June, said that she has a don’t-feed-the-trolls approach to Derick’s vitriolic tweets.
She says that he’s just trying to elicit a reaction, and that she’s not going to give him what he wants.
A Twitter account that appears to primarily exist to attempt to engage with various celebrities asked Derick if he has a response.
Derick, seemingly thirsty for the attention, was only too happy to reply.
“I just speak out against child abuse, and especially those who promote it, because it’s the right thing to do,” Derick claims in a tweet.
“It’s just absolutely awful,” he has decided. “And should not be celebrated.”
Obviously, parents supporting their trans children are doing the literal opposite of child abuse.
But if you think that it’s hypocritical for a member of the extended Duggar family to make Derick’s statement, you’re not alone.
Fans laid into Derick on the subject of child abuse.
Fans had some serious questions for Derick.
“Do you think blanket training is child abuse?” asked on person on Twitter.
Blanket training, a practice of teaching months-old babies to obey their parents by using pain and fear, is advocated by Michael and Debi Pearl.
Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar are tied to this abusive practice.
“You should speak out against Michael and Debi Pearl. Children have actually died at the hands of parents upholding the Pearls view of ‘child rearing.’ That’s child abuse,” says another tweet.
“Teaching parents how to physically abuse infants and children,” the tweet continues. “Speak out against them.”
But the practice of hitting babies to break their will at a young age isn’t the only child abuse scandal in the Duggar family.
“You seemed to have no problem appearing on a TV show of a family that forced their sexually abused daughters to appear on Fox News,” accused another tweet.
The tweet went on that the girls were forced “to say that none of them even knew what their brother was doing to them because they were all asleep, when the police report told a different story.”
Another tweet also brought up Josh Duggar, asking: “So, when are u gonna speak up about your in laws promoting child abuse by protecting ypur brother in law?”
That tweet continued: “Or does that not matter because they believe in God? You’re a hypocrite and a hateful man. You don’t get to hide behind god as a way of disguising that.”
Child abuse is an extremely upsetting subject. Countless children every day live in fear of a family member or supposed “caregiver.” The world does not do enough to protect its children.
Fortunately, Jazz, who will be 18 on October 6, 2018, has a loving and supportive family who have cheered her on as a girl and as an advocate.
We only wish that more transgender children received love and support instead of responses like Derick’s.
While Derick’s anti-trans attacks on Jazz saw him booted off of Counting On, the good folks over at The Ashley note that I Am Jazz begins airing its fifth season in 2019.
It sounds like she’s right to ignore Derick’s social media vitriol. She doesn’t need it to stay relevant — but he does.
