Kids' Book Author Raymond Arroyo Bashes Boys Who Do Ballet on Fox News

The author of the Bible-inspired Will Wilder series of children's books mocked Lara Spencer for apologizing for her insensitive comments about boys and ballet.

Tracy E. Gilchrist

Tracy E. Gilchrist is the VP of Editorial and Special Projects at equalpride. A media veteran, she writes about the intersections of LGBTQ+ equality and pop culture. Previously, she was the editor-in-chief of The Advocate and the first feminism editor for the 55-year-old brand. In 2017, she launched the company's first podcast, The Advocates. She is an experienced broadcast interviewer, panel moderator, and public speaker who has delivered her talk, "Pandora's Box to Pose: Game-changing Visibility in Film and TV," at universities throughout the country.

Read Full Bio

Tracy E. Gilchrist

August 30 2019 11:36 AM EST

August 30 2019 12:38 PM EST

Sorry to interrupt...
But we wanted to take a moment to thank you for reading. Your support makes original LGBTQ+ reporting possible. Help us hold Trump accountable.

One-time Monthly

$19.67 $50 Other

$5 $19.67 $50

Good Morning America cohost Lara Spencer apologized on-air for playing into stereotypes about boys practicing ballet in a segment last week. Now Fox News commentator Raymond Arroyo -- author of the Bible-inspired Will Wilder series of children's adventure books -- not only mocked Spencer for her apology but dug in with sick stereotypes about ballet and masculinity Thursday on Fox's The Ingraham Angle.

"Can you believe this?" Arroyo said of Spencer's apology. "This is what politicians do when they offend an ethnic group."

"I was in ballet for one class. I got kicked out," host Laura Ingraham interjected.

"I did ballet as part of my acting training. People razz you," said Arroyo, a graduate of the Tisch School of the Arts in New York City. "If you walk around in tights they're gonna razz you. It's not exactly the, you know, exemplary of the male..." he said, before Ingraham interrupted.

Arroyo (news director and anchor of EWTN News, the news division of Eternal Word Television Network) and Ingraham lambasted Spencer for using a segment on GMA to elevate the voices of male dancers while hundreds of male dancers participated in a class outside.

"I screwed up," Spencer said on GMA after the dance world and social media exploded in response to her laughing at U.K. Prince George's love of ballet. "The comment I made about dance was stupid and insensitive, and I am deeply sorry."

Trending stories

How climate disasters hurt mental health in young people

Discover the power of Wellness in your life

Elon Musk uses burner accounts on X, doesn’t fact-check: report

Gerald Garth is keeping people of color happy and healthy through trying times

The Charles is Pacific Grove's new LGBTQ+ hotel

6 lesbian films coming we can't wait to see in 2025

All 6 rogue Mississippi cops got long prison sentences in 'Goon Squad' torture of 2 Black men

France becomes world’s first country to enshrine abortion rights in constitution

Cowboys & Queens U.S. tour by Jane Hilton: A modern American dream

For us, by us: 15 great trans movies made by trans filmmakers

In 'Survival of the Thickest,' queer joy and activism are one and the same

SFAF's Dr. Tyler TerMeer says he'll continue to fight for health care for all

Watch Kelly Clarkson celebrate Trans Day of Visibility on her show

Trans Day of Visibility meets MAGA? See this 'Drag Race' star's fierce stunt

Country star Tanner Adell comes out as pansexual

From rock legends to Pride flags: Discover the vibrant LGBTQ+ scene in Asbury Park

Bob the Drag Queen shades Mistress Isabelle Brooks’ weight loss: 'Girl, you have to get new pads'

Joe Biden has tied the record for most LGBTQ+ judges confirmed in federal courts

Trump's orders prompt CDC to erase HIV resources

Where to stay in LGBTQ+ Ireland: Castles, domes and luxury retreats

Season 4 of The Switch on resilience & radical self-love returns this spring

Elton John broke down crying while writing new song 'about my death'

Discover why chic Costa Navarino is Europe's luxury getaway

JD Vance ruthlessly mocked after everyone in Greenland refused to welcome wife Usha Vance

Watch: In gay period romance 'Lilies Not For Me,' playful wrestling turns sensual (exclusive)

"I have learned about the bravery that it takes for a young boy to pursue a career in dance," she said. "And last night, I sat down with three influential dancers who lived it firsthand."

Shortly after the segment in which Spencer mocked George's overscheduled childhood with an emphasis on the ballet piece of his curriculum, she issued an apology on her Instagram.

But the outrage roiled throughout the weekend with members of the Broadway and dance communities calling her out for perpetuating a hateful stereotype.

Arroyo, whose children's books have been dubbed the "Catholic 'Indiana Jones' for Kids" by the National Catholic Register, leaned into antiquated notions of masculinity to further shame men and boys who practice ballet.

"This ended [the Spencer controversy], by the way, with 300 hundred ballet dancers, mostly boys, doing a class in Times Square," Arroyo said, giggling.

"Look at that," he said, smirking and pointing to images of men dancing.

"I hope she offends a mechanic next so the boys know how to change the oil in the car," Arroyo said.

Watch the exchange below.