Tracy Morgan has issued an apology through his agent for his homophobic rant that attacked lesbians, gay men, President Obama, almost anyone who has had sex, and perhaps worst of all, his own sons. But why should Morgan’s apology be accepted?
“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,” Morgan’s statement reads. “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.”
Morgan’s first apology, both public and private, needs to be to his own sons, aged 20, 24, and 25. He then needs to tell, repeatedly, every parent and every child in America that homosexuality is not a choice — as he falsely stated during his rant in Tennessee last weekend — and that it is not acceptable to threaten — or attempt — to stab your child, no matter what age they are, if they come out and say, “I’m gay.”
Like it or not, in our celebrity society, an icon like Morgan, especially in the African-American community, has tremendous power.
HRC apparently agrees.
“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,†said Fred Sainz, HRC vice president for communications. “Words have consequences and Morgan should be held to a higher standard. Until he does something meaningful, his brand will remain tarnished.â€
Perhaps Morgan’s next performance should include the fact that his father died of AIDS — which has severely impacted the African-American community — and should include how that impacted him. Perhaps Morgan could become a valuable advocate for people with HIV/AIDS, and do PSAs discussing HIV prevention.
Tracy Morgan had better not ever make an “It Gets Better” video — not yet, anyway.
“At the Ali Forney Center, we work with hundreds of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youths who have endured violent rejection from parents,” says Carl Siciliano, the executive director of the Ali Forney Center in New York City.
“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.”
Morgan’s anti-gay, anti-lesbian, sexist, hateful rant was not an off-the-cuff “meltdown,” as some in the media suggest. It’s a part of his “schtick,” it’s part of his routine, and he’s been criticized for similar comments before.
So if this is how he really feels, why accept his apology? Unlike Morgan himself, his slick and polished apology — released through his agent — clearly is the product of Hollywood, not a homophobic hater — which, sorry to tell you, Tracy, but you are.
Evan Hurst at Truth Wins Out adds, “questions remain. When Michael Richards and Mel Gibson had their respective meltdowns, people rightly asked where those sentiments actually came from. And the fact of the matter is, parts of Tracy’s Nashville rant have appeared in earlier performances.
“So we wonder: Where do Tracy Morgan’s anti-gay sentiments come from? What leads him to go only so far with anti-gay sentiments and then suddenly let loose with one of the most vicious tirades imaginable? Does he understand why people — LGBT or not, in Tennessee and beyond — were so hurt by what he said?”
In the Internet age, a comment in Tennessee can be heard and felt in Tunisia, in Tallahassee, in Toronto.
In one performance, Morgan told the world it’s ok to threaten violence on your children, it’s ok to hate LGBT people just because of who they are.
What should the world be telling Morgan, and those like him?
Apology accepted?
Why?
Morgan has a lot more work to do to fix this. Words matter. Actions matter more.