Remember this morning, when we told you about how the Advertising Council and the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network had teamed up to fight the phrase “That’s so gay”? And remember how the groups enlisted Wanda Sykes and Hilary Duff to headline their first two television commercials? Well, here they are!
Ms. Sykes is up top, Duff’s down below.
rick
my love and admiration for wanda knows no bounds.
HL
It would be nice if there can be ads about how not cool it is to say “that’s so retarded.”
pc
gay = happy, gay = homosexual and gay=lame. as a gay man (homosexual, not lame), i really don’t take offense how it’s used.
Alco
I don’t particularly take offence, but that’s part of what we call latent homophobia. It just drills in people’s mind that gay = lame.
It’s so weird because as a french guy who came to London, I met a very good friend of mine who’s Irish and she uses it constantly and I’m like “Hellooo”.
A little consideration and a little less oblivious-ness, thank you 😉
Wanda rocks, as usual 😉
michael
I think for a lot of people they don’t even realize its a put down.
But living in a downtown area of a major city I hear it all the time.
For some they do know exactly what they are saying and use it to be passive aggressive. But the world is full of fucked up people so
its more about them than it is about me anyway.
kevin
the commercials are themselves “so gay” – i.e. LAME. Homophobia is NOT like making fun of someone’s dress or moustache. More akin to saying “That’s so ASIAN” or “That’s so BLACK” when you think something is ugly or stupid. If the commercials equated it with bigotry, and not style, it would be more effective. Call it what it is.
No 4
My friend’s kids used to say “That’s gay”. So considering they are mixed white and black 13 and 10 year old boys…We were BBQing and they said it SO I said to him…what if I called you a n!gger. He hasn’t said it since.
Smokey Martini
There is just one TEENY-TINY problem with these ads. “16 year-old boy with a cheesy mustache” and “Girl who wears a skirt as a top” speak only of superficial things.
That is, mustaches and tops can be changed with a quick swap of a top or the help of a razor blade. There is zero mention about gayness being a core, subjectivized aspect of one’s personal identity (that which is ‘inborn’ or ‘ingrained’). Rather, it can be taken so far as to suggest that gayness (like a top or a mustache) is something that can, and will, change with the next trend or growing phase.
Just something to think about, boys.
Dan
Great links. Thanks 🙂
MEN-SAR
hilary duff looks like a horse faced tranny
tommy
It is about time. Each step helps people understand. These aren’t for you old fags with thick wrinkled skin. This is for the young boy or girl who is fighting to find themselves, and dignity at the same time. Bash them if it helps you feel better, I for one applaud the message and hope we spread them to everyone we know.
I did!
Aamyko
I’m so glad that The U.S has finally taken some steps to fight homophobia. It is such an important part of uniting a nation and while there will ALWAYS be people that hate Gays, this kind message says that you might not agree with their lifestyle but you should at least RESPECT them.
LUV these 2 Artist and happy to see that they are using their voice in a positive way.
Tom D Frog
Wanda’s ad rocks. The ending has the kind of zing! that will get people’s attention during commercial breaks. BRAVA!
I do take offense at the “That’s so gay”. I am glad they are addressing it.
Tom
Tim
I suppose this is admirable and all, but I can’t help wondering if we don’t have bigger fish to fry. Even when I was 16 I couldn’t be bothered by what other 16 year olds said or how they said it.
Chuck
great ads, about time.
Smartypants
In the mid-90s I worked with a group in Washington State documenting anti-gay violence and harassment in schools. Over five years we documented everything from teasing on the playground and getting beat up on the way to school, even several horrific gang rapes of girls and boys who were ‘different’.
The common pattern in virtually all the physically violent incidents was that they began with name calling that was dismissed or even initiated by school officials. These commercials are more important than you think. By calling out seemingly minor incidents, like using “that’s so gay” as a demeaning or dismissive term, the pattern is interrupted at the very earliest stage.
Will it stop all teasing, bullying and school violence against gay kids? No. But it does make a serious contribution by establishing a standard of acceptable behavior that helps create a safer environment for young people and the rest of us.
nikko
It does offend me- deeply. My knee jerk reaction upon hearing this insult is to slap the person right off the head- no warnings (I’m Italian-Canadian!). Why don’t we give’em a tatse of their own medecine like, “Ugh, tha’s so straigh!t”
There is much in gay culture that truly is tacky (that’s a word that should be used) and straight male culture that is downwright awful, but we must separate the good from the bad, the baby from the bathwater.
RCDC
i mean, ever since middle school i’ve been that irritating chick who says “so… what?” any time anyone says “that’s so gay.” and you know, it worked pretty well at my high school, once enough people got in on it. that and a hilarious speech about “that’s so vegetarian”.
but then, i went to a hyper-liberal all-girls school. bit easier there.
happy michael
this discussion is so gay! happy or homosexual, take your pick
Andrew
The first episode about BBBB was about this very topic.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkpcYTxg7gI
Andrew
> I don’t particularly take offence, but that’s
> part of what we call latent homophobia. It just
> drills in people’s mind that gay = lame.
Wait, what’s so wrong with handicapped people that you’re afraid of having ‘gay’ associated with it?
Leslie
Hi there.. please feel free to email me about this… I like these ads in a way..
I believe in freedom of speech… however what bothers me about these ads is that there has never been and never could be such an ad defending WOMEN against the words “bitch” and “pussy” used by people to refer to something in the same way as “less than via being related to being a woman” which for some reason, is still deemed as a role “less than” that of a man in society….
I’m am a bisexual female (that is, not “bar”sexual as Tyra Banks calls girls that are just bi to get attention) … I’m a real bi.. I’ve known forever and could have a relationship with either a man or a woman. That being said.. I have fallen victim to including this phrase in my vocabulary.. but to me it’s harmless for me to say because I’m bi (or as i like to say, “half gay” lol.. ).
Where is the line drawn here? Is it ok for gay and bi people to say it much in the same way some black folks use the “n-word” nowadays? If not, then do you think that’s ok?
Mostly what I’m getting at is… I absolutely LONG for the following to be able to be a REAL AD TOO:
“hey man, don’t puss out on us, have another beer”
“I mean yeah come on man don’t be such a little bitch”
“Hey, when you call someone a ‘bitch’ or a ‘pussy’ because you think they’re being cowardly or ‘less than’ … do you realize what you say?”
“it’s pretty much like saying
“hey man, don’t act like your MOM, have another beer,” …
“I mean yeah come on man don’t be so much like your SISTER”
(not to mention your defaming the best part of the female anatomy!!!)
“KNOCK IT OFF!!”
(or “it’s pretty much like saying ‘that’s so gay’ “) ha.
COME ON SCIENCE!!!
I mean ADVERTISING!!
WANDA! HILARY!! WHERE U AT!?!
I’D LOVE SOME FEEDBACK ON THIS ONE!!
<3