In what of the better pieces of television I’ve seen Kathy Griffin appear on, she lashes responds to Sarah Palin calling her a bully, since Kathy says she’s intent on targeting 16-year-old “faggot” hater Willow. “When her daughter Willow posted on her Facebook wall, and I don’t follow her on Facebook, I am not on Facebook, when I saw on all the, you know, news coverage about the daughter using the f-word, the pejorative for gay people, and I don’t mean the fun four-letter word that I use,” Griffin tells Lawrence O’Donnell. “When you’re 16 you know you’re not supposed to use that word. That’s a word you really do kind of tie in with bullying, especially in the LGBT community, a community I think that she doesn’t care about, but that’s completely obvious to me that’s very, very different. You can see if you look at that posting, that’s not a joke.”
retorts
Kathy Griffin: Sarah Palin Hates Gay People
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Jim Hlavac
Oh, Sarah Palin is no different than virtually 95% of the politicians in this country in not liking gay people. She’s just the lightning rod. Palin doesn’t “hate” us any more or less than any other politician does — she barely utters a word about us. I’m not saying Palin is this fine women, I’m saying, Griffin — if you want to pick on a political figure, pick on them all. They’re all equally guilty and complicit in not liking gay people to one degree or another. After all, not a political figure other than a gay one has ever really said “Gay people are OK”
Except, well, except Barry Goldwater. Mr. Republican himself did say in 1994 “You don’t have to like it by gay people deserve full constitutional rights including marriage and military service.”
And he’s the only one I can recall saying that. The rest do lip service for the votes, and then disappear behind the fog of legislative tactics to do nothing and they say nothing unless pressed or cornered, or otherwise we wouldn’t be having this silly national debate. Don’t just pick on Palin, pick on ’em all.
Scott in NYC
I basically agree with Jim.
I like Kathy Griffin a lot. She’s very funny and a huge supporter of the LGBT community. She appears to be a loving daughter to her Mom and Aunt to her nieces and nephews…a loyal friend, etc. I really do enjoy watching her and have paid plenty of money to come to her concerts, etc.
That said, I have this sense of unease with her targeting of a 16 year-old girl, no matter how offensive what she said is. Teenagers say and do stupid things sometimes (my own niece who is fully supportive of me and my lifesytle is 16 and has used that word on her facebook page when “joking around” with friends). My niece is wrong too to use that word, even if she doesn’t fully get why in this more enlightened time (I was her age 17 years ago and being gay is much less of a deal now than it was then). She would not deserve to be publicly humiliated by a well-known personality three times her age relentlessly in some of the most watched and read press in the country.
If Kathy wants to target and take on important ADULTS who say horrible things about gay people, she has my full support. If she wants to take on the general issue of anti-gay slurs and bullying in schools, I am totally with her. But relentlessly and very publicly attacking a high school sophomore? Sorry, I can’t support that.
She should just be honest…she gets a huge kick out of goign after the Palin family so relentlessly and in a manner devoid of any decnecy that she’s even gone to the minors in the household as pure fodder. Not okay…and those of us who are LGBT, love Kathy and fight for our rights should be the first to say so.
christopher di spirito
Kathy Griffin is correct.
Mama Grifter belonged to a church in Wasilla, AK (the meth capital of the 49th state) that regularly held “pray-away-the-gay” sessions.
Mama Grifter’s uncle (and his partner of 25 years) live in Anchorage and say she wants nothing to do with them.
I enjoy Kathy Griffin’s relentless attacks on Mama Grifter. So many people in the media and entertainment seem to fight the urge to genuflect before the “great, and powerful Palin.’ I don’t get it.
Get her, Kathy.
Scott in NYC
@christopher di spirito: I think the counter-argument to your post is actually in your post…all that mama grifter whatever stuff…
MAMA…okay target. High school-aged daughter. Not an okay target.
Rob
How exactly is Kathy “targeting” Willow Palin? Yes, she joked that she was “going after” Willow next, but it’s not like she’s literally going to hunt her down. She’s made worse jokes about younger people before. I just appreciate that she knows when to set the jokes and politics aside for serious issues like this. It’s very unusual to see her sit at a desk and be totally serious about something, but I’m glad she does it when she needs to.
Cam
Palin pretends that Griffins remarks about her daughter came out of nowhere and how dare anybody talk about her porr little angels.
Sara Palin made her children public figures when she put on on Dancing with the Stars and put the other one in her reality TV show. If she doesn’t want them held publiclly accountable, then don’t sign them to high paying TV deals.
hephaestion
Sarah Palin is the stupidest human to ever breathe air.
Kathy Griffin could wipe the floor with Palin’s sorry ass. She is going easy on her.
lizcivious
Why shouldn’t Palin’s kid be called out by Kathy Griffin or anybody else just because she’s a teenager? She’s almost a legal adult at 17 (by now) anyway, and it’s the teenage kids in middle school and high school who are the targets of most of the bullying by their peers. Teenagers, Willow Palin included, need to be constantly reminded that physical bullying and calling people hateful names are reprehensible acts. Besides, Willow was taunting her schoolmate on Facebook, which isn’t exactly a private forum.
Daez
Interesting argument…
On one side you have a woman hell bent on exploiting gays for everything she can get so that she can keep her name popular in the media, and on the other side you have Sarah Palin.
Seriously, KG wouldn’t have a career without the gay fans she has, and that calls anything she says into question.
So many kids use “faggot” to mean anything other than gay today. Trying to equate the word to gay in the younger generations is just about ridiculous, all language evolves.
Josh in OR
@Daez: “language evolves”
Explain that to those in the African-American community who still have kittens when a white guy says ‘nigger’, even in the context of a cultural, literary or historical discussion.
Language evolves, sure, but ‘faggot’ will ALWAYS be a perjorative term for a segment of humankind in much the same way ‘nigger’ is. BOTH are disgusting words with no place in civilized discourse outside of a discussion of meaning or context, no matter what some hipsters pretending to be ironic may try to say. And those who use the terms in the way Willow Palin or the Phelps clan do SHOULD be called out on it and made to face public exposure, ridicule and revulsion.
Mac McNeill
@Scott in NYC:
I agree that Willow should not be a target, HOWEVER
Mac McNeill
I’m sorry I didn’t get to finish my comment, it posted without me hitting enter.
HOWEVER, her mother should be a mother and make her daughter take down the hateful word. That is what a mother does. She does not defend her daughter for using it. But then again it goes to class and Palin lacks that class. She is white trash in a big pond. What the Republicans see in her is beyond me. If she was to be elected president we would be the laughing stock of the world.
Gregger
@Scott in NYC: Kathy Griffin gets a kick out of pointing out hypocritical haters. With as drunk as they were you never heard “W’s” twins mouth off like that, or Chelsea Clinton was in the public eye at the same age and crap like that didn’t come out of her mouth. Bigotry is taught, usually by the parents as children pick up behaviors of those they are close with and what they are normally exposed to. If children are taught to respect others we don’t have this level of BS. Sarah Palin is a stupid bigot and her husband doesn’t come across much better to me. Bristol Palin still uses the term “Faggot” are you going to excuse her too? By the way Bristol is now dating some jackhole who uses the term “retard” in public. Let’s see what “Mama Grizzled” errrrr Grizzly has to say about that one.
Gregger
@christopher di spirito: Amen sister!!
Pip
Sarah Palin is a raving hypocrite and her daughter is the bully for cavalierly tossing around a word like faggot. And as Kathy pointed out, Sarah Palin’s little confrontation was also totally factually wrong. So whatever.
Kieran
Isn’t Kathy Griffin the girl who shouted to a male heckler to “TAKE THE DICK OUT OF YOUR MOUTH!” on live TV? I wonder what she meant to imply by that retort? Now, lo and behold, she’s our fearless protector against gay haters.
Geoff B
@Kieran: Actually what she said (to a heckler) was, “I don’t go down to where you work and knock the dick out of your mouth” somthing comedians (including Margaret Cho and Bill Mahr) have said to hecklers since forever. I think comedians deserve a little more license than the bigoted daughter of a bigoted idiot.
Gigi
@Geoff B
I agree. And thanks for the quote!
Geoff B
@Gigi: No problem. I work in a bar and I can’t tell you how many times I have longed to say that to a pain-in-the-ass customer. 🙂
Mike
Go Kathy!!!!
FluffyInDrag
@Scott in NYC: The trouble is that that 16-year-old is going to be an 18-year-old casting votes very soon. That’s only 2 years to show her that she’s fucking up. And, more to the point, that was someone else’s 16-year-old she said that to. And other 16-year-olds see that little ignoramus getting away with it scott free, just like her mother and all the other politicians get away with whatever they do, and you have to wonder what hope is there? Who will teach them that it’s not FUCKING okay to do and say those things?
I can’t think of anyone more appropriate than Kathy Griffin to step in where her ignoramus mother failed miserably.
I hope she turns her over her knee.
trevor
Do you people spell check ANYTHING you post?
It’s like complete and utter idiots typing English as a 14th language on a site trying to be news.
Come on.
Scott in NYC
@hephaestion: Again, it’s not Sarah…it’s Willow…here 16 year-old daughter.
Scott in NYC
@Mac McNeill: Mac – Basically I agree with everything you just said. Willow – should not be a target, Sarah is fair game. I agree with that.
Scott in NYC
@Gregger: Gregger, I have to say, you are looking way too far into this. Perhaps Willow is a budding bigot…you and I don’t know her and therefore don’t know if that’s the case. What I can tell you is a 16 year-old using that word is unfortunately common and does not necessarily denote a deep-seated hatred.
I am not – have not – and would not – excuse the use of that word. I am simply making the point that if anyone wanted to teach her or take her on, do it in private. Don’t make it your business to relentlessly attack a 16 year-old girl on the public stage. It diminishes a good cause for one thing. There are plenty of people who are not defniitely on our side…when they see someone go after a young girl, do you think that helps or hurts our general cause? With all the good intent in the world,and with literlaly thousands of things Kathy has done in full support for us (and I could thank her all day for that) this is one thing I felt was off base. It would seem to be self-evident that this is not a great thing, but I guess not to you and to others on this site. Frankly, I’m surprised.
Scott in NYC
@FluffyInDrag: Fluffy – read my other responses. It is NOT okay to use that word and it is a larger fight. Want to know how many teenagers who don’t hate gays use that word on their facebook pages? Want to wonder what it does for our cause when it’s handled this way? I don’t think it has a positive affect, even if I agree with the general pespective behind it.
HumpDay
@trevor: You said it. If the proverbial alien from another planet were to land on Earth and attempt to understand gay people from their posts on Queerty, we would be declared illiterate idiots who really love doling out hate on people not like us. Such progress.
ALEX
Sarah Palin calling anyone else a bully? Pot, meet kettle.
christopher di spirito
@Scott in NYC: I don’t think anyone gives one iota what you think about Mama Grifter or anything else.
If you want to help the Palin circus, go out and buy her book so she can continue to keep both feet out of the trailer park.
Otherwise, STFU.
Scott in NYC
@christopher di spirito: I am intrigued by the fact that you simultaneously say nobody cares about my postings while reading – and responding – to each of them. If you saw support of Palin in anything I wrote, then you either are too dumb to understand plain English or too dishonest to properly represent what people say. All your “Mama Grifter” bullshit aside (soooo clever by the way) I shut up for nobody bud!
Kindly go fuck yourself.
DillonS
Problem 1: Willow’s post. She should be called out on it, regardless of her age. No one has to be mean about it,but she needs to know what she posted was wrong. And, for the record, she’s 16 … not 8.
Problem 2: Palin didn’t take responsibility as a parent. She didn’t say it was wrong and that she talked to Willow about it. Instead she ranted about the media and about how unfair everyone was to her and her family (her go to line).
Rubber
Too bad Kathy won’t tell you that she loves gays, but only because they are her main source of revenue. If Sarah Palin were her main income she’d fall in line and hate the fags too. Too bad people don’t know the real Kathy Griffin…Ms. Money Whore at anyone’s expense.
Dynex
Love Kathy and LOVE her for going after this family. This scum of a hateful family. You have my support Ms.Griffin and you won this round hands down!
Jeffree
@Dynex: Palin is an easy target, but Kathy aims well! I hope she tries her hand at some of the other nutjobbers out there like Santorum, Bachman, & Boehner to name a few who deserve a little ribbing of their own !
Jim in St Louis
I don’t get it… Is this humor? Is Kathy doing this for a joke? As far as I know Kathy is not gay and could not be personally offended, so I guess she is acting offended on behalf of gays who are a big fan base of hers. Soooooo this makes her different how from any other public figure with a base that panders just to them.
Silly and stupid to lash out and attack a teenager while claiming that you are anti-bullies, Kathy has done this before to the daughters of politicians (Scott Brown’s)
Sorry Kathy- why can’t you go back to when you were actually funny? Back when you made jokes about hollywood and even about yourself. Now its just being mean to anyone you think your fans don’t like.
Michelle
@Jim in St Louis: Uncle Toms like you WOULD write a lengthy drivel to defend the other side. Firstly, Kathy never once attacked Willow. Just addressed her extremely hateful comments on a very public social networking site. Secdonly, Willow is 17…..17. Not a baby, not a child, but was a Senior in high school. That’s an adult, and I knew exactly what I said and how I said it and the consequences of it at that age. Finally, Kathy has always aimed at Sarah Palin and for good reason. Why shouldn’t she? completely fair game. And before you go speaking for Kathy’s fan base, A.) read the many supportive pro Kathy comments here…go to one of her shows and see how even more supportive her fans are of her commentary and thirdly go to her forums on her fan sites and see how we love her new materiel that couples comedy and political activism, which makes for the perfect blend of humor and worthy message. As evidence by her getting all this press to speak the truth in regard to equality, and entertain us while doing so.
Sowwy it hurts ya hater clan. You’ll get over it.
hephaestion
Kathy & Levi Johnston were hilarious together. And Levi knows that the Palin Klan are just a bunch of hate-obsessed buffoons that don’t even know what the capitol of France is.
christopher di spirito
@Scott in NYC: I don’t shut up for anyone either “bud.”
If you wanted to do something helpful for Mama Grifter, you would run out and buy a few of her books — most of which are now found on the discount table at Barnes and Noble. She’s the lone bread winner for growing brood of losers and grifter.
Kinda’ like you.
Jim in St Louis
@Michelle:
I did see KG live about 4 years ago, and she was funny, mostly her act was stories about this or that show biz person (some I had never heard of) but today there really isn’t anything funny about what one failed reality show star says about another failed reality star’s daughter.
p.s. How did you know I was black?
Ivy
I don’t know anything about this but Griffin actually accused someone else of being a bully? Pot, kettle.