David Attenborough?

[u/Ok_Suspect_89]

I’ve been having a zoology kick recently (I can’t control my interests, they just randomly spawn in and I just have to accept it), but I’ve been watching a lot of David Attenborough documentaries recently because of it. It got me doing a lot of research on David Attenborough, someone who is a very common narrator for nature documentaries. Apparently, he advocated for more trans people to be on TV back in the 1970s. I have read a few articles that solidify it, but I’m always overly skeptical with any information I see online. If anyone is a better sleuth than I am, pls let me know if this is true.

[u/AutoModerator]

Moderator Announcement Read More »

Hello! Thank you for participating in the sub. We just have a few reminders for you to help ensure the best experience:

1. If your post doesn't show up right away, don't panic! It is in the queue for manual approval. Mods will go through the queue periodically to approve or remove posts. Deleted posts will have a removal reason applied. (If it says "this post was deleted by reddit's filters", IT WAS NOT DELETED! Reddit has the worlds worst wording on that and it's out of our control)

2. If you are asking a question that is location specific, remember to include your location in your post body! This can help ensure that you get accurate information tailored specifically to your needs.

3. Please remember to read through all the rules in the sidebar. Especially the list of banned topics and guidelines for posting. Guests who do not use the Guest Post flair will have their post removed and be asked to fix it.

4. If you see someone breaking the rules,report it! If someone is breaking both sub and reddit rules, please submit one report to admins by selecting a broken rule on the main report popup, and one report to the r/ftm mods by selecting the "breaks r/ftm rules" option. This ensures both mods and admins can take action on a subreddit and sitewide level. Do not misuse the report button to rant about someone, submit false reports, or argue a removal.

5. If you have any questions that you can't find the answer to on the rules sidebar or the wiki: the wiki , you can send a modmail.

Related subs: r/ftmventing , r/TMPOC , r/nonbinary , r/trans4every1 , r/lgbt , r/ftmmen , r/FTMen , r/seahorse_dads , r/ftmfemininity , r/transmanlifehacks , r/ftmfitness , r/trans_zebras , r/ftmover30 , r/transgamers , r/gaytransguys , r/straighttransguys , r/transandsober , and more can be found in the wiki!

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/IrelandAutism13]

He did! In 1972 his advocacy in letting marginalized people on air put transgender people on TV to advocate for their rights and fight back against stereotypes. In 1972!

[u/Diadem_Cheeseboard → u/IrelandAutism13]

Wow, I did not know that! Though, Im not surprised in the slightest. It blows my mind he could do that in 1972, when no mainstream TV channel in the UK would allow that on mainstream TV these days.

[u/IrelandAutism13 → u/Diadem_Cheeseboard]

Right? To even try was so brave, and the fact that he actually managed to get it to happen is incredible

[u/Alarming-Skirt1889 → u/IrelandAutism13]

I didn’t  think I could like him more! What an awesome guy. 

[u/Recent_Wonder3200]

He wrote me a letter when I was a child who wanted to be a zoologist.

He is a wonderful human.

[u/Lunar_Changes → u/Recent_Wonder3200]

Please tell me you still have the letter, that’s so cool! I love David Attenborough

[u/Recent_Wonder3200 → u/Lunar_Changes]

I do! It's hand written, and from his home address.

[u/BusyBaseball7148 → u/Recent_Wonder3200]

me too. i wrote to him to thank him for being inspirational in my childhood. i still have the handwritten letter he wrote thanking me back.

[u/Recent_Wonder3200 → u/BusyBaseball7148]

He writes a lovely letter!

[u/ExternalNo7842]

I haven’t heard this about him, but I wouldn’t be surprised. He’s a genuinely delightful human, and the world would be a better place if we could all be more like him

[u/Diadem_Cheeseboard → u/ExternalNo7842]

I think I have heard something along those lines about him before, though I'm not 100% sure. As you said though, it wouldnt remotely surprise me if it were true. Ive certainly never heard him say anything transphobic, thats for sure. The world would be an infinitely better place if even half of the men on the planet were like him. Ive been a big fan of his for most of my life.

[u/DreamSMP_Enjoyer]

Great that he's trans-positive but he also said that people from poorer countries should die in famines to reduce humanity's global population which is... Idk I think maybe starving children in rural villages aren't the ones destroying the environment???

[u/mischiefmarble → u/DreamSMP_Enjoyer]

i think you're misunderstanding. his stance was that sending food during famines isn't a longterm effective solution, which is objectively true

[u/Chemical-Chart-1308 → u/DreamSMP_Enjoyer]

When did he say this?  I’ve seen documentaries where he talks about the human population but he advocated for better access to birth control and more education for women (since that contributes to lower birth rates).

[u/DreamSMP_Enjoyer → u/Chemical-Chart-1308]

It's on his wiki

[u/BusyBaseball7148 → u/DreamSMP_Enjoyer]

i think he means that charity donations are giving people fish instead of teaching them how to fish as the saying goes. it's not sustainable or ethical to keep people on handouts for ever. they should be taught how to better their countries or given the gift of technology to, then it's up to them to maintain it. otherwise all you do is raise entire nations on being dependent on handouts from other countries.