Evo Morales: 'Chicken causes baldness and homosexuality'

If you don't want to end up bald or gay, don't eat chicken, says Bolivian President Evo Morales. Speaking at an environmental conference this week in Cochabamba, Bolivia, (officially titled the World People's Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth) Morales told attendees in an inaugural address that chicken producers inject female hormones into the fowl, "and because of that, men who consume them have problems being men."

Thousands at the conference reportedly laughed -- perhaps nervously -- when Morales made the statements. He also said hormone-injected chicken causes young girls' breasts to grow prematurely, according to Noticias 24.

The Associated Press notes that most Western countries ban hormone injections in chicken, but Morales, Bolivia's first indigenous president, also went on to diagnose the practice as the cause of male baldness. "Baldness, which seems normal, is a sickness in Europe," he said. "Almost everyone is bald. And that's because of what they eat."

The Bolivian president pointed to his own shock of thick black hair as proof. No sign of baldness on his head, Morales said.

A gay-rights advocacy group in Spain sent a letter of protest in response to Morales' statements to Bolivia's embassy in Madrid, but otherwise, reaction on the international level has been somewhat muted.

The Cochabamba conference ended Thursday with accords calling for industrialized nations to "change the system of capitalism that is imposed upon us."

-- Daniel Hernandez in Mexico City

Photo: Bolivian President Evo Morales. Credit: EFE; Noticias 24

Comments

[ussrwasntcommunist]

iExelente! Here we have a brilliant example of both libel and misinformation! Evo never said anything about homosexuality. He was most likely refering to ED, low sperm count, or some other un-masculine medical condition. Only a very narrow mind would read a statement like that made by Sr. Morales and see homosexuality. Well played sir, you have managed to paint one of the most fair-minded, intelegent men in the world as a barbaric homophobe! Furthermore, you also manage to report on one of the most significant international events of the year without even touching on a topic of substance. Well done sir! Well done indeed!

[Mtnup1]

This is why I DON'T eat chicken! And as proof, I have all my hair and voted yes on proposition 8!

[Bill Floyd]

The global response was "muted" because there was nothing remarkable on which to report. (not controversial, not about homosexuality, not about incorrect information)

[Kyle]

I have to agree with commenters 2, 4, and 5. What Morales said has been misinterpreted.

This is what he said in Spanish: "El pollo que comemos está cargado de hormonas femeninas. Por eso, cuando los hombres comen esos pollos, tienen desviaciones en su ser como hombres."

Which translates to something like: "The chicken we eat is full of feminine hormones. That's why when men eat chicken, they have deviations in their masculine being."

Note that at no point did Morales refer to homosexuality. What he was referring to – perhaps not with the most finely crafted language – could be a number of things: maybe he was talking about erectile dysfunction or sterility, both caused by hormone consumption; maybe he was talking about lower sperm counts found in men in developed countries; or maybe he was talking about changes in the sexual maturation process in boys who consume these hormones. Maybe all of them.

But what we do know is that he never uttered the word 'homosexuality' during his speech, so why it's quoted in the title of this piece is perturbing, and surely a sign of poor journalism.

[shadow_man]

I don't think science was taught where this guy went to school. If he even went to school.

[Peter Hemberger]

Concerns about what is in our food are serious concerns. It is too bad that your headline and story focus on one comment that Morales made, while glossing over the actual story. Rather than reporting on the seemingly failed attempt at humor by the President, perhaps you should try reporting on the serious issues about the food we eat, what is in it, and what it is doing to us.

[Steve]

Evo, I'm a socialist, and a damn proud one at that, and I want nothing more than to see the end of the imperialist, capitalist system that imprisons us all. But when you make ridiculous claims like eating chicken turns you gay - as if, for one, being gay is undesirable, and two, gay people in the world wouldn't even exist if it weren't for chicken hormones, I have nothing but ill will towards you. And it's a pity, because aside from these comments, I thought you were a pretty great guy. But it looks like it doesn't matter what side of the debate you're on - scapegoating gays is apparently a pastime for weak men and women on the right, and the left. I sincerely hope the voters replace you with a real socialist.

[Brenda Norrell]

It is easy to write trite articles like this, to make yourself look good, and to distract from the real purpose of the conference. If you are going to write about such an important conference as the one here in Bolivia, you should at least be here, not sitting home and spinning words to make yourself look clever.

[Jesse Taylor]

Thank you for not focusing on anything of substance that Morales is saying, such as his valid criticisms of endocrine disruptors, toxic food additives, etc. It's really necessary for people like yourself to selectively present facts to paint a false reality so that people don't consider what he is saying and take it to heart. Good job (but I'm sure the corporate hacks at the LA Times already told you that ...)

[Court]

Estupido!

[DRE DAWG]

I HAD CHICKEN FOR LUNCH!!!!! How long do I have before I fall in love with Ricky Martin and need hair plugs????

[James]

Actually baldness is a sign of advanced evolution. Just as most of the fur that covered primitive man's body has evolved away, so has the need for hair. Thick hair, such as that of the Bolivian president, is a sign of primitiveness. The fact that he can't grow a beard or mustache is proof that he is very closely related to primitve headhunters.