So I just happened to be passing time playing one of my
favorite games on my iPad, imDB trivia.
So a question arose which I did not know the answer to and I went to
ImDB to check (yes I cheated, don’t judge me. I’m trying to get a perfect
score). As I’m typing in the movie
title, I notice a headline, which reads, “GLAAD wants CNN to fire Roland S.
Martin over David Beckham tweets”.
Apparently Roland Martin made several tweets following the David Beckham
commercial. If you’re unfamiliar
with what Roland said, here it is:
“If a dude at your Super Bowl party is hyped about David
Beckham’s H&M underwear ad, smack the ish out of him! #superbowl,”
Then he followed with this one:“I bet soccer fan @piersmorgan will be in line at H&M in the
morning to get his hands on David Bechman’s [sic] underwear line!
LOL #superbowl.“
So according to the article (which is featured at EW.com),
people immediately began accusing him of homophobia. Roland has responded with several statements, which among
them is this one: “Fam, let me
address the issue that some in the LGBT community have raised regarding some of
my Super Bowl tweets yesterday. I made several cracks about soccer as I do
all the time. I was not referring to sexuality directly or indirectly regarding
the David Beckham ad, and I’m sorry folks took it otherwise. It was meant
to be a deliberately over the top and sarcastic crack about soccer; I do
not advocate violence of any kind against anyone gay, or not. As anyone
who follows me on Twitter knows, anytime soccer comes up during
football season it’s another chance for me to take a playful shot at
soccer, nothing more.”
Now, I don’t really care whether you like Roland Martin or
not. This isn’t even about that.
Actually, you don’t even have to like or agree with what he said as this isn’t
even about that. What I’m really
perplexed with is why this requires GLAAD to petition to have this man
fired. Have we seriously become so
sensitive that we must cry and demand extreme measures all because someone said
something we don’t like? First of
all, I didn’t take anything he said as being homophobic. I took it as a joke. And I’ll be the first to admit that
I’ve made off hand jokes saying someone should be punched or something similar
for doing something. Not that I’m
in any way serious—though should I really have to say that? Next thing you know, the family of the
next person who commits suicide will sue the public for the overused
#killyoself references. Now the man has clarified that he didn’t mean it as a
homophobic remark. So why does he
have to lose his job for a bad joke? Now I’m sure there’s somebody out there
who will want to liken this to the infamous Don Imus incident where he referred
to the young ladies on the Rutgers University basketball team as “nappy headed hos”. And I’ll just go ahead and admit this
now that I didn’t think that called for Imus to lose his job (again, don’t’
judge me). I mean this is beyond political correctness. Political correctness has run amuck and
we are just tossing good sense into the trash.
OK, I get it.
Words have power. Yes they
do. Words have power, how ‘bout
you? Seriously, I do believe that
words have power. But, I believe
they only have the power that YOU give to them. If you feel degraded by something someone says to you, then
YOU are the one who degraded yourself.
A person can say whatever they want to you, but it only amounts to the
value you assign to it. You can
think I’m dumb all day (you’re free to hold that opinion). However, unless I
agree with you, I am not dumb. It
doesn’t matter what you think or what you meant when you stated such. If I don’t believe you, I won’t give
any credence to what you say, and as such I won’t see the evidence of such in
my life. Now I will admit, it can
hurt a lot when someone says something degrading to you. I won’t even try to dispute this. But, simultaneously, why are we
creating situations where there is none?
A simple statement, regardless of the intent of the speaker, can be
issued so many different meanings and someone somewhere can claim they were
offended by it.
Maybe it’s because my father raised me. And if you’re
familiar at all with him you know good and well that political correctness was
not his forte. Maybe it’s because
I’m too exhausted to care. Maybe
it’s because I’m actually right and this foolishness must end. I do believe we are overly sensitive. Stop giving meaning to things or people
you don’t want in your life. Stop
crying foul every time a person says or does something you don’t like or disagree
with. If we keep this up, no one
anywhere will ever work or speak. There’s
this phrase I like a lot. It goes
like this: “I disagree.” Try saying that the next time someone says something
you disagree with. Or there’s this
other tactic I like too called ignoring.
It works wonders. Let’s start giving em a try.
And maybe it's just because, like Roland Martin, you hate gay people and think the idea of us being killed is hilarious. You're a disgusting bigot, and the world knows it. Congrats.
ReplyDeleteThe problem is that FAR too many young people who are still struggling with their sexuality and/or their feelings about their sexuality (or what others have TOLD them to feel about their sexuality) are not yet mature, wise, safe or strong enough to be able to take comments like Roland's - whether made in jest or not - and brush them off. And because of comments like Roland's, too many people assume they have a free pass to treat others poorly because they aren't 'man enough' or 'act like sissies' or 'seem gay.'
ReplyDeleteWords DO have power, D'Niece. And the kind that Roland spoke in his tweets are, like it or not, given an inordinately overwhelming amount of power by people who do not feel safe enough in their own skin to live the rich and happy life they deserve.
But beyond that? Roland's tweets - even if you look at them in a non-homophobic context - simply weren't that funny.
Je'Niece I have issues with people "selectively" being offended by certain things. Apparently it's okay to use the N-word if you are black or use the F-word if you are gay. However, they are offended when anyone else uses it. Please take a minute to read the comments of this blog post stating it is okay to use the F-word if you are gay. http://sofurious.com/2012/01/30/marlo-hampton-apologizes-for-calling-the-kids-that-f-word/
ReplyDelete@ Anonymous 1: LOL! I've never been called a bigot before. They're right. There really is a first time for everything. And for the record, he never said anything about killing anyone.
ReplyDelete@ Nick: I do agree that words have power. However, I maintain that they still only have the power that YOU assign to them. As far as not finding what he said funny, then just don't laugh. And I don't say that harshly. I just don't understand why someone needs to lose their job because you don't like what they said. But that's just me.
@ Anonymous 2: I agree with the "selective" offense. I don't agree with it myself.
Anonymous 1: Okay-- so you just think beating people up because they seem gay to you is hilarious. That's still bigoted. Gay men, often black gay men, really do get beaten by people who talk like Martin. If you don't care enough about that fact to see the problem in what he did, and in your defense of it, then there can be no doubt that you are bigoted against gay men. Statement of fact. Either you are with the people who get eat up or the people you beat them. You are with the people who beat us. You're proud of it.
ReplyDeleteThere is no statement of fact. Roland never said beat someone up because they're gay. I never said I found that funny. Hell, I never even said whether I found what he actually said to be funny. You just want to keep calling me a bigot, and THAT'S what I find funny. Like I said, if you don't agree with me, just say that. I'm fine with the fact that we clearly disagree. But in my opinion, to resort to these far fetched assumptions is a bit much.
ReplyDeleteExcuse me. Please point me to ANYWHERE you have ever expressed concern about violence against gay men. Of course, you never have and never will. And when gay people say= "Hey-=- that's dangerous, offensive, and hurtful." You refuse to listen. You don't see the offense so it isn't there. THAT is why it is a statement of fact that you are a bigot.
ReplyDeleteSo this is going to be my last response because you just want to believe what you want and that's fine. I don't know about your reading comprehension skills, but at no point did my post even address violence toward gay men. My post was about getting up in arms because a person says something you don't like. Again, your statement that I am a bigot is not FACT! It is your opinion. And at no point did I not listen to what anyone said to me. So again, it is your opinion. I have yet to state my opinion regarding gay men, violence toward gay men, or even my opinion about what Roland Martin said. I simply don't understand why the need for him to lose his livelihood because he happened to say something someone doesn't like. So again, you are not stating fact when you call me a bigot. You are stating your opinion, which you are entirely entitled to.
ReplyDeleteAgain, anyone who cannot see the hatred of gay people in what Roland Martin has said shares it. If your response to the violence gay men face in the world is "Well, I never even said what I think about it" you are no better than anyone who sees violence against women and shrugs. You are the person in the crowd who doesn't help with the lynching, but does nothing to stop it and thinks they are morally okay because they just cheered it on quietly.
ReplyDeleteWords definitely have power, but only the power you assign to them. By refusing to accept or giving those words meaning, you, and you alone, maintain the power!
ReplyDeleteNice article Je'Niece!
Thank you so much Donna! I'm glad someone understood what I was saying :)
ReplyDeleteAs I was reading this article, one thing that came to mind was something I say when people work my nerves. I say, "you need to go play in traffic!" Now, I do not push people into the street in front of moving vehicles, nor do I go on websites worshipping leaders who have lead flesh vessels to commit mass suicide. I am in my 40's but sometimes I revert back to my adolescence and say silly things because, 1- it's funny, 2- it lightens the situation and 3- I'm originally from Brooklyn, NY! We say all sorts of crap we don't always mean. However, I do not want people to hurt or kill themselves. My husband's brother was playing in the street as a child and was killed by a hit a run driver. I am very sensitive to that and I would never say such a statement to nor in front of him. So, one may say, "then why would you even say such a thing at all? You are heartless and a hypocrite!" My reply would be 1- because I'm human, 2-it's funny, 3- it lightens the mood and 4- I'm from Brooklyn, we say all sort of crap that we do not mean. I agree, words do carry power. But we can't be paranoid and look for offense under every rock and behind every bush. Take a breath. We have to remember that not everyone is "out to get us."
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed this article.