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Ben Kawaller vs. transgender people

Ben Kawaller is a writer, podcaster, producer, and anti-transgender activist. Kawaller, who is gay, promotes the narrative that the LGBTQ rights movement “lost its way,” primarily through its support of transgender rights.

Background

Benjamin Knobler “Ben” Kawaller was born in September of 1984. Kawaller earned a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University in 2007. After graduating, Kawaller was an editorial intern at New York magazine until 2008, then worked as a script reader at Wilderness Films from 2008 to 2011. Kawaller interned in the marketing department at Manhattan Theatre Club in 2012 before joining UTA as an agent trainee and talent assistant, then worked as a producer’s assistant for Dan Jinks Company in 2014.

Kawaller began freelance writing in 2014. From 2017 to 2019, Kawaller hosted and produced videos for Wehoville. In 2018, Kawaller wrote and starred in the film I’ve Been Thinking. From 2019 to 2023, Kawaller was a contributing writer and host at Los Angeles Magazine. From 2023 to 2025, Kawaller was a writer and producer at The Free Press. In 2025, Kawaller joined Longview as a podcast producer and New York Post as an on-camera reporter and producer.

Anti-trans activism

In 2026, Kawaller, Matt Boll, and Andy Mills released the three-part podcast series Strange Bedfellows via Reflector. Mills and Boll were also responsible for the 2023 podcast series The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling.

Kawaller describes it as “a three-part look at the movement known as LGBTQ.”

Part I: When LGB met T

“Episode one looks at how homosexuals went from being social outcasts in post-war America to the 21st century’s most successful civil rights story and what happened when transgender activists started getting in on the action.”

  • Dana Beyer – Early transgender rights advocate.
  • Herndon Graddick – Former president of GLAAD.
  • Lorri Jean – Former CEO of the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center.
  • Ben Appel – Journalist and author of Cis White Gay: The Making of a Gender Heretic.
  • Jamison Green – Early transgender rights advocate.

Part II: The Q

“The arrival of the Qs…and all that came after. Featuring interviews with prominent trans advocates and former leaders of major LGBTQ groups, episode 2 reveals the philosophical differences lurking beneath the surface within this alliance of non-conformists. With his usual immunity from embarrassment, Ben Kawaller explores how a movement for civil rights became a project to shape society’s understanding of sex and gender.”

  • Dana Beyer – Early transgender rights advocate.
  • Dr. Susan Stryker – Professor Emerita of Gender and Women’s Studies at Arizona State University.
  • Lorri Jean – Former CEO of the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center.
  • Herndon Graddick – Former president of GLAAD.
  • Ben Appel – Journalist and author of Cis White Gay: The Making of a Gender Heretic.
  • Jennifer Finney Boylan – Transgender author, former president of PEN America and former contributing opinion writer for the New York Times.
  • Leor Sapir – Journalist and senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute.
  • Matthew McMurrow – Gay activist and adviser to former Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York and former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.

Part III: Backlash

“Examines some of the controversies currently roiling society—starting with a look at one of the most contentious subjects in American history: sex education. With interviews with some of the minds behind the National Sex Education Standards, reporter Ben Kawaller offers a rare look into the philosophical underpinnings of the new ideas about sex and gender that have taken root throughout American society, what they reveal about the tensions between “gay” and “queer,” and what they might spell for the future of the movement—and for America.”

  • Eva Goldfarb – Professor of Public Health at Montclair State University.
  • Madelaine Adelman – Justice Studies professor at Arizona State University and former GLSEN board member.
  • Alison Macklin – Policy and advocacy director at Sex Ed for Social Change (SIECUS).
  • Jennifer Finney Boylan – Transgender author, former president of PEN America and former contributing opinion writer for the New York Times.
  • Ben Appel – Journalist and author of Cis White Gay: The Making of a Gender Heretic.
  • Dana Beyer – Early transgender advocate.
  • Herndon Graddick – Former president of GLAAD.
  • Lorri Jean – Former CEO of the Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center.

References

Murillo, Paulo (August 5, 2024). Journalist Ben Kawaller Talks Wokeness in the LGBT Movement in Damage Control Conservative Podcast. WeHo Times https://wehotimes.com/journalist-ben-kawaller-talks-wokeness-in-the-lgbt-movement-in-damage-control-conservative-podcast/

Anti-trans coverage

Gryboski, Michael (April 1, 2026). Fmr. GLAAD pres. condemns push to trans kids: Stop harming children. The Christian Post https://www.christianpost.com/news/former-glaad-president-condemns-push-to-trans-kids.html

Selected writing by Kawaller

Kawaller, Ben; Boll, Matt; Mills, Andy (March 20, 2026). The End of LGBTQIA? Longview https://longviewinvestigations.substack.com/p/the-end-of-lgbtqia

Kawaller, Ben (December 30, 2024). Should Fifth Graders Learn What It Means to Be Transgender? The Free Press https://www.thefp.com/p/should-fifth-graders-learn-about-transgender-ideology

Kawaller, Ben (June 5, 2024). ‘I’ve Woken Up.’ Free Press correspondent Ben Kawaller, a centrist Democrat, recently spoke to a gay GOP group. Here’s what he said. The Free Press https://www.thefp.com/p/ive-woken-up-the-people-who-own-the

Kawaller, Ben (June 24, 2023). Can a Boring Old ‘G’ Still Hang with the LBTQIAs? The Free Press https://www.thefp.com/p/boring-old-gay-man-meets-lgbtqia-at-pride

Media

Reflector with Ben Kawaller (March 20, 2026). Strange Bedfellows Part I: When LGB met T. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WHVgY5kaA4

Reflector with Ben Kawaller (March 20, 2026). Strange Bedfellows Part II: The Q. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dyjIvOLw7GM

Reflector with Ben Kawaller (April 2, 2026). Strange Bedfellows Part III: Backlash. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_ekDXI7NE0

Hazard Ration with Benjamin Ryan and Ben Kawaller (July 3, 2025). “It Feels Like I’m In a Body That Isn’t My Own”: Voices From the NYC Pride Parade Post-Skrmetti. https://benryan.substack.com/p/it-feels-like-im-in-a-body-that-isnt

Smoke ‘Em If You Got ‘Em with Nancy Rommelmann, Sarah Hepola, and Ben Kawaller (March 26, 2026). 247. Ben Kawaller On How LGBTQ Came Together — And Fell Apart. https://smokeempodcast.substack.com/p/247-ben-kawaller-on-how-lgbtq-came

Rersources

Ben Kawaller (benkawaller.com)

The Free Press (thefp.com)

X/Twitter (x.com)

Instagram (instagram.com)

LinkedIn (linkedin.com)

Harvard Crimson (thecrimson.com)

TikTok (tiktok.com)

Laugh Factory (laughfactory.com)

IMDb (imdb.com)