Carlos Santana has no plans to back out from his recent anti-trans monologue, neither is he sorry for it.
The Smooth guitarist sparked public ire after a clip of the legendary guitarist surfaced from a concert in Atlantic City, N.J., in July, where he went on a rant against transgender people.
“When God made you and me, before we came out of the womb, you know who you are and what you are,” he said during the show. “Later on, when you grow out of it, you see things, and you start believing that you could be something that sounds good, but you know it ain’t right.”
Santana refused to consider any gender a thing besides the conventional two, saying, “Because a woman is a woman and a man is a man — that’s it,” he said. “Whatever you wanna do in the closet, that’s your business. I’m OK with that.”
Speaking to Billboard in the aftermath, the Black Magic Woman performer expressed his respect for the queer community, sans apologizing for his insensitive comments.
“Here is my personal goal that I strive to achieve every day. I want to honor and respect all person’s ideals and beliefs whether they are LGBTQ or not,” a statement from the guitarist read.
“This is the planet of free will and we have all been given this gift. I will now pursue this goal to be happy and have fun, and for everyone to believe what they want and follow in your hearts without fear.
“It takes courage to grow and glow in the light that you are and to be true, genuine, and authentic. We grow and learn to shine our light with Love and compliments. Have a glorious existence. Peace.”