ST. LOUIS — Transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, whose face on a Bud Light can created an uproar last year, is scheduled to speak on Monday at St. Louis University.
The social media star was linked to many of Anheuser-Busch InBev’s headaches after the controversial marketing campaign.
LGBTQ advocates on Tuesday called Mulvaney’s appearance at SLU ‘significant.’
“Obviously giving a voice to trans people at a Jesuit institution is a big deal,” said Micah Ballard, director of development and finance at St. Louis’ Metro Trans Umbrella Group. “It’s cool to see them bringing in a very different perspective students aren’t used to.”
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But conservative activists quickly criticized the decision. Some took to social media, calling it “embarrassing“ and “woke crap.”
Alexandra Leung, president of SLU’s College Republicans, said Mulvaney’s message contradicts SLU’s Catholic teachings — but also said her student organization did not have plans to protest the event.
“Mulvaney’s comments have been deemed disrespectful and derogatory towards women and to SLU’s central mission,” Leung said in a statement.
She said the College Republicans tried to get women’s sports activist Paula Scanlan to come speak the day after Mulvaney’s visit, to balance viewpoints, but was told by the school that security could not accommodate their request.
The controversy regarding Mulvaney started last April, when she posted a video showcasing a personalized Bud Light can with an image of her face on the side, courtesy of A-B.
Some consumers, including celebrities such as Kid Rock, called for a boycott in protest of the partnership and Bud Light sales plummeted. Over the summer, Bud Light lost its title of America’s No. 1 beer, A-B stock fell and, in its most recent earnings report, the company said beer sales dropped by $1.5 billion in North America in 2023.
Mulvaney, now 27, said A-B did not reach out to her following the fallout and she faced “more bullying and transphobia than I could have ever imagined.”
“For a company to hire a trans person and then not publicly stand by them is worse, in my opinion, than not hiring a trans person at all — because it gives customers permission to be as transphobic and hateful as they want,” Mulvaney said in a TikTok last July.
SLU’s event is being organized by the school’s Great Issues Committee, which aims “to stimulate insightful, provocative debate on current issues that will inform and educate, as a service to the St. Louis University community,” according to the committee’s description.
In January, the committee hosted actress and activist Jameela Jamil, known for her portrayal of Tahani in NBC sitcom “The Good Place” and her promotion of body-positivity. Last year, fashion designer Tan France, one of the Fab Five featured in “Queer Eye” on Netflix, spoke, as did Brenda Song, who played London in Disney channel shows “The Suite Life of Zack & Cody” and “The Suite Life on Deck.”
Mulvaney is known for her social media presence, specifically her Days of Girlhood series on TikTok, in which she chronicled her life following her coming out as a trans woman.
She has previously spoken at other colleges such as the University of Pittsburgh, Weber State University in Utah, Emerson College in Boston and Pennsylvania State University.
Penn State’s student newspaper reported that Mulvaney addressed “beergate” when the school hosted her last December.
“I realized that these companies were capitalizing on my identity and transness in a way that was really ugly,” Mulvaney said on stage. “I was putting my energy and identity into situations that were not safe for me, or for the (trans) community.”
Robert Fischer, spokesperson for Missouri’s LGBTQ+ advocacy group PROMO, said the SLU community is “walking the walk.” The university has partnered extensively with PROMO in trainings, public events and other activities.
“It’s something to be celebrated — religious communities who celebrate and showcase trans and LGBTQ communities,” Fischer said.
“Sometimes those speakers or voices are left out,” he continued.
SLU’s event Monday will start at 7 p.m. at the Busch Student Center’s Wool Ballroom on North Grand Boulevard.
SLU said that 500 chairs were requested for the event, less than half of the ballroom’s full capacity.
Attendees must show a university ID for entry.
The university did not immediately respond to comment.