A non-binary trans-identified male is suing an award-winning novelist for misgendering him on social media. Lucía Etxebarria, a famed author and outspoken advocate for women’s rights, may be forced to pay out 11,000 Euros (approx. $11,600 USD) to Marcos Ventura Armas.
According to pro-woman news outlet Reduxx, Ventura’s campaign against Etxebarria began in 2020 after she posted comments on X (formerly Twitter) describing Ventura as a “man.” At the time, Ventura had gained some notoriety on Spanish-language social media for his claims of being non-binary despite his overtly masculine appearance.
While the 2020 post was the primary trigger for the lawsuit, Ventura’s lawyers apparently combed through several years of Etxebarria’s social media history to find more instances of “transphobia.”
In the 500-page filing, several posts are presented where Etxebarria fails to validate Ventura’s self-declared “gender identity,” including one in May of 2022 where she described Ventura as “having a beard, penis, and testicles.”
Ventura, a prominent LGBT activist, also took issue with Etxebarria referring to him as a “trans woman” in one instance because he identifies as “non-binary.” Ventura also stressed that being treated as a male and being misgendered with “he/him” pronouns negatively impacts his self-esteem.
Notably, Ventura, who describes himself as a “political activist and for the rights of LGTBI people,” is also known for his ties to the Spanish Socialist Party, holding several positions within it over the last decade.
In order to fight the lawsuit, Etxebarria is now being forced to travel to a court nearly 2000km away from where she resides.
Although she launched a successful crowdfunding campaign to offset the cost of her legal fees, sources close to her admitted that the long-distance location and voluminous complaint of Ventura’s lawsuit was “deliberately sought out” to make her life more difficult, emotionally and financially.
In addition, Ventura hired a lawyer known for his trans activist cases, including one against Carola López Moya, a psychologist who came under scrutiny by the Health Council for saying “trans women are male.” Although the lawsuit was eventually dropped, the Health Council initially requested that López pay a fine of 120,000 Euros (approx. $120,000 USD) and stop practicing for five years.
