Controversial psychologist Jordan Peterson defended his recent tweet shaming an oversized Sports Illustrated model – even after he faced significant backlash over the comments.
The Canadian doctor turned YouTuber Quote-Tweeted the story from The Post on May 16, about the debut of Sports Illustrated cover model Yumi Nu, in which she explained, “Sorry. Not nice. No amount of authoritarian tolerance will change that.”
Hours later, amid criticism, he announced his departure from the popular social media app.
Peterson reiterated his statement in an email to the Telegraph on Thursday, claiming the tweet was “not a mistake, nor is it the reason I left Twitter.”
“The use of this model that was not athletic (reminder: SPORTS Illustrated) was commercially manipulative and in relation to the model itself (although engaged in her own exploitation),” he wrote.
“Beauty is an ideal. Almost all of us fall short of an ideal. I am not willing to sacrifice any ideals for false compassion. Period. And certainly not the ideal of sporty beauty.”
While his account remained active, the 60-year-old said he had told his staff to keep him off social media.
“I told my staff to change my password to save me from temptation and I’m leaving,” he added in an interview with the publication. “If I have something to say, I write an article or make a video. If the issue isn’t important enough to justify it, maybe it would be best to just let it go.”
However, the break was short-lived.
Peterson, who signed a podcast deal with conservative news outlet The Daily Wire on Thursday, was suspended from Twitter this week after attacking transgender actor Eliot Page for her “sin.”
screenshots posted online features the former University of Toronto professor’s tweet in question, which reads: “Remember when pride was a sin? And Ellen Page just had her breasts removed by a criminal doctor.”
Twitter claimed Peterson violated the platform’s “anti-hateful conduct” rules.
In his interview with The Telegraph, Peterson argued that while people perceive traits of the opposite sex, it doesn’t mean they’re “in the wrong body.”
“So the idea that there’s a smooth transition and overlap in gender personality is true,” he said. “What isn’t true is that it means you’re in the wrong body, and that’s not even a little bit true.”