Last week, Chicago White Sox Gordon Beckham scrawled a message in the infield dirt to his friend and former teammate Kansas City Royal Chris Getz: "Getz is gay."
Fans in the stands of U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago could see the message. Even if they couldn't see the words, the words would still be wrong. Beckham has since issued a couple of apologies -- one on Friday and another on Saturday -- and from the sounds of it, he was troubled by his stupidity (although his initial apology was a little shaky):
"I just want you to know that that's not me," he said. "I don't use slurs. I have a lot of gay friends. I didn't mean it as anything -- you know, like gay as in ... happy! Or, you know, an alliteration -- 'Getz is gay.'As for Getz, he told the Star that he "wasn't offended.""It's the first time I've ever done anything like that with Chris," he said. "And I didn't even see his reaction. I asked him afterward if he was going to write anything back, and he said no. It was wrong. It was stupid. If I offended anyone, I apologize. I wish I could take it back, but I can't."
Beckham did something that's not unheard of on playgrounds across the country. He just happened to do it on a bigger stage. It's stupid and wrong, and he should know better. But as we've seen it over and over in the last year, he's not alone. Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant yelled "fucking faggot" at an official. Chicago Bulls center Joakim Noah called a fan a "faggot." Hell, even Beckham's coach Ozzie Guillen hurled "fag" at a reporter. Even pro wrestler CM Punk caught flack for telling a fan "nice faux-hawk, you homo." They likely won't be the last ones, even as Grant Hill tries to stop 'em.
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Had the comment been "Getz is hetero" would reaction have been so self-righteous and loud? Of course not. Further proof that the gay world does not want equal rights, they want special status and perks for being so bold as to be gay. What cr@p. What a non-story waste of space and time. Almost as much a waste of time as my responding to it. :-)
There is if you are an ultra-liberal who thinks every little word and playful insult between friends should be broken down and analyzed by psychologists and "feelings counselors". Like this weekend when the US women's soccer team won their game, the announcer made a point to correct himself after saying the US was down to "ten men" after the red card. He followed it up by saying "down to ten persons". Yet, in the post game interview a US player also used the term "ten men". Often the people trying to be 100% politically correct are the ones who aren't even part of the group they are trying to be politically correct for. When will people realize there is a huge difference between someone saying "You're gay, LOL" and what people say when they are legitimately spewing hate speech about homosexuals.
Although I admit the "I have lots of gay friends" line is a pretty lame and dated.
As a woman who was raised by two, loving fathers, I think this has been blown way out of proportion. While it may not have been the best choice of words, it was ribbing between two, former teammates. If you don't think much worse is said on the field, night after night, you are quite naive. As a matter of fact, I've heard far worse said by fans in the stands at sporting events.
Clumping Beckham's comments in with those made by Bryant, Noah, and Guillen are a bit of stretch. As per the definition, the term gay refers to men and women who are attracted to members of the same sex. The "F word", however, is a derogatory slur geared, mainly, at homosexual males.
As a Chicago native, I find the entire story even more ironic considering the comments made throughout and after the 2010 Stanley Cup Finals. People got a kick out of the "Chrissy Pronger" piece in the Chicago Tribune and had no problem having a good laugh when someone within the Blackhawks organization took to the dry erase board in the the locker room and wrote "Chris Pronger is gay." What's the difference?
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