NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Pattie Gonia, born Wyn Wiley, is a self-described "environmentalist, drag queen and professional homosexual," who promotes environmental activism through their creative films and theatrical productions.
Wiley describes himself as a gay man. His "Gonia" persona however uses she/they pronouns while in drag. Out of drag, Wiley uses he/they pronouns.
On Tuesday, October 3, tennis legend Martina Navratilova called a video of Interior Secretary Deb Haaland interacting with the drag performer at New York City's Stonewall Monument "a joke" and a "pathetic parody of women."
The tennis legend, who has long been considered an advocate of gay and lesbian rights, reacted vehemently to the LGBT History Month video shared by the Interior Secretary's official social media account.
Navratilova has previously written about her opinions on transgender athletes who compete in female sports.
The World Athletics' decision to prohibit transgender athletes from competing in women's categories was hailed as a "step in the right direction" by the athlete in March, although she later called for an "open category for all-comers," per Daily Mail.
Pattie Gonia posted their first TikTok in December 2020
Gonia has more than 570,000 Instagram followers. Wiley is a 30-year-old gay Nebraskan who enjoys the outdoors and works as a creative director for Adidas, Red Bull, and Disney.
Wiley was on a week-long hiking vacation in Colorado when he donned some high heels and made his debut as Pattie Gonia.
Each TikTok Gonia has posted since the first one in December 2020 has reiterated the strong message about respecting the earth we live on.
In order to illustrate their point about global warming, they also reenacted a scene from 'The Sound of Music'. Gonia explains the source of their creative inspiration as being "My love of drag and the outdoors has always been one and the same."
On Earth Day in April of this year, Gonia asked their supporters to take action to address the climate catastrophe.
They have been using online platforms to raise awareness of environmental issues for several years now. The 'Out magazine' even selected Gonia in 2020 as one of the Out 100 of 'Out magazine', per The Advocate.
Gonia trekked into the mountains in high heels in order to raise tens of thousands of dollars for charity organizations that support LGBTQ+ rights and environmental causes.
Last year, for Halloween, they dressed as "the scariest thing on Earth...climate change."
Gonia also co-founded The Oath, a group dedicated to educating and bringing together outdoor communities via a shared commitment to take action for the environment, inclusion, and adventure.
Deb Haaland conducted interview with Pattie Gonia
Gonia was the subject of an interview by Interior Secretary, Deb Haaland, at the Stonewall National Monument in New York, the country's first national memorial to LGBT history and rights.
She inquired about Stonewall's importance in American history from Gonia. In response, Gonia stressed the significance of understanding the history of prejudice toward the LGBT people, especially in locations like Stonewall.
"I think it's because queer rights are more under attack than ever," Gonia remarked.
"At a place like Stonewall, this beautiful place, it's a place where so much discrimination and hatred occurred against the queer community, but it's also a place where resistance and queer joy and queer liberation happened."
Gonia also emphasized the ongoing struggles the queer community faces and the importance of working together to create a more just and equitable future.
But Navratilova shot back, asking, "Is this a joke? The pathetic parody of women continues."
Martina Navratilova faces criticism for her comments
Navratilova faced criticism for her comments regarding drag queen Pattie Gonia's interview with Haaland.
In response to Navratilova's statement, one X user wrote: "Butch lesbians always faced the same derision. "Not really a woman." We should all embrace each other. And this is a drag queen, not a trans person. They're certainly not trying to pass for female!"
After a user called out the 18-time Grand Slam champion, dubbing her a "bigoted Karen" and claiming that she was trying to profit off the work of others, particularly trans activists, the Czech-American tennis star stressed how dedicated her life has been to the cause of women's rights.
Navratilova has long advocated for gay and lesbian rights, but in recent years, she has criticized the increase in the number of trans women competing in women's sports.
She criticized the US Tennis Association (USTA) in August for its position on transgender players participating in women's tennis competitions.
It happened at the same time as transgender tennis player Alicia Rowley captured the Women's National Tennis Championship and the 'coveted Golden Ball'.
