Jordan Peterson Would ‘Rather Die’ Than Delete Tweet About Elliot Page That Got Him Suspended

The “traditionalist” internet celebrity said: “If I can’t be let back on because I won’t apologize, I could care less”

Jordan Peterson/
Jordan Peterson/YouTube

Conservative Canadian author and psychologist Jordan Peterson, who was temporarily suspended from Twitter for his tweet about “The Umbrella Academy” star Elliot Page, said in a nearly 15-minute video posted to YouTube on Friday that he refuses to apologize, even if it means the suspension becomes a lifetime ban.

His June 22 tweet about Page, who announced he was a transgender man in December 2020, was a reaction to the premiere of the Netflix show’s third season premiere. In the series, Page’s character has also transitioned from female to male.

Reacting to a comment from Page during an appearance on “Late Night With Seth Meyers” that he is proud to introduce a trans character on the series, Peterson tweeted, “Remember when pride was a sin? And Ellen Page just had her breasts removed by a criminal physician,” deliberately deadnaming and misgendering the actor.

The tweet was flagged for “hateful conduct,” with the suspension noting it went against the platform’s policy: “You may not promote violence against, threaten, or harass other people on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age, disability, or serious disease.”

“I’ve essentially been banned from Twitter,” he said in the video, “I say ‘banned’ but technically I’ve been suspended. But the suspension will not be lifted until I delete the ‘hateful’ tweet in question, and I would rather die than do that.” He went on to dismiss the “fuss” over his tweet.

Peterson’s daughter Mikhaila shared a screencap of the suspension notice on Twitter, writing, “Wow. @jordanbpeterson got a twitter strike. No more twitter until he deletes the tweet. Definitely not a free speech platform at the moment @elonmusk.”

Peterson, who was just hired by conservative podcast Daily Wire, frequently makes headlines for his anti-trans stance. In January, he told Joe Rogan that being transgender is a result of a “contagion” and is similar to “satanic ritual abuse.”

The 60-year-old, who is also a professor at the University of Toronto, temporarily quit Twitter in May after blowback for his comments that plus-size Yumi Nu’s Sports Illustrated cover is “not beautiful” and that “no amount of authoritarian tolerance is going to change that.”

Peterson describes himself as a “traditionalist.”

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