Morgan Offends With Anti-Gay Talk, Publicist Releases Statement of Apology
As noted at Truth Wins Out, comedian Tracy Morgan, in a recent stand-up routine, made some comments about gay people that led an audience member to post a note on Facebook about the comments. As summarized by Truth Wins Out:
Morgan’s entire demeanor changed as he allegedly claimed that being gay is a choice, that homosexuality is something that kids learn from the media, and that gay youth victims of bullying are simply “whining.” Furthermore, he allegedly said that if his son was gay and “whined” about being a bullying victim, he would kill him, using words that will not be repeated here.
In response to an outcry from the audience member, Truth Wins Out, the Human Rights Campaign, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation and others, the publicist for Morgan released the following statement to GLAAD:
I want to apologize to my fans and the gay & lesbian community for my choice of words at my recent stand-up act in Nashville. I’m not a hateful person and don’t condone any kind of violence against others. While I am an equal opportunity jokester, and my friends know what is in my heart, even in a comedy club this clearly went too far and was not funny in any context.
HRC‘s vice president for communications, Fred Sainz, says that the statement isn’t enough:
Tracy Morgan exercised extremely poor judgment and he did the right thing by apologizing. But that’s just not enough. He’s a role model and Morgan now has a responsibility to make amends for his horribly hurtful and dangerous ‘comedy’ routine. He also needs to go further than his apology and correct the record: no one should feel ashamed because they are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender and they should definitely not become a victim of violence. Words have consequences and Morgan should be held to a higher standard. Until he does something meaningful, his brand will remain tarnished.
This afternoon, an offer to Morgan came from Carl Siciliano, the executive director of the Ali Forney Center, which helps homeless LGBT youth be safe and become independent as they move from adolescence to adulthood:
At the Ali Forney Center, we work with hundreds of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youths who have endured violent rejection from parents. It is a tragedy that so many parents in our society are so infected with homophobia that they are unable to accept their gay children, and cast them out onto the streets. We appreciate Tracy Morgan’s apology, but wish to invite him to meet with some of our young people who have endured violence and rejection from their families for being LGBT, so that he can better understand the the human suffering caused by those who promote homophobia against youths.
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