Unfortunately, you had to know this was coming.
Angered by the news that black voters were a major factor in the success of Prop 8, California’s gay marriage ban, some segments of yesterday’s anti-Prop 8 protests in LA soon devolved into hateful pits of racism:
Geoffrey, a student at UCLA and regular Rod 2.0 reader, joined the massive protest outside the Temple of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Westwood. Geoffrey was called the n-word at least twice.
It was like being at a klan rally except the klansmen were wearing Abercrombie polos and Birkenstocks. YOU NIGGER, one man shouted at men. If your people want to call me a FAGGOT, I will call you a nigger. Someone else said same thing to me on the next block near the temple…me and my friend were walking, he is also gay but Korean, and a young WeHo clone said after last night the niggers better not come to West Hollywood if they knew what was BEST for them.
mama
Jesus christ. What the fuck is wrong with people?!?!
Tara - Praenomenal
They are angry.
Miguel
So what? That’s still wrong and way hypocritical. What’s the point of citing all this stuff about how Prop 8 is similar to previous bans on marriage between interracial couples and to the deprivation of civil rights faced by African Americans in the 20th century if now we’re going to revert to the same deplorable ways of the oppressors.
Come on people, we know better than that. Don’t let anger fill your hearts with blinding hate.
asa1973
This just makes me sad…
rjb
Showing their true colors. They were racist November 3rd same as the 4th. This hate isn’t materializing midprotest those few folks are just showing it. No level of justifiable anger and rage can justify ugliness like this. Nope. None!
Tim
Oh yeah, that will help.
They didn’t support us before but now they will?
dwight
This just gave the gays who are racist a reason to express it.
Blacks can be homophobic and gays can be racist. Sad but true.
As a black gay it definitely disturbs me!
Tara - Praenomenal
Miguel,
I was not justifying it. I was answering Mama’s question. Anger is quite simply the reason. Wrong or right there it is. No real reason to be shocked. Could have seen that coming a mile away.
Also Getting into hyperbole does no one any good. Yes, the people shouting racial epitaphs are assholes. HUGE ASSHOLES. ok. But no one is trying to take away rights from African Americans (Right now) so no one is resorting to the tactics of the opposition. The reality is these assholes, reacting to race in the face of anger need to be educated. Be that by hook or by crook.
This is spiraling way out of control on all sides, feed by the MSM and puts all of us right where the theocracy wants us. Where the “majority” want us. Fighting for table scraps.
Tony
Lee Stranahan: Four Lessons Gay Marriage Actvists Must Learn From Obama
1) Anger Loses
The protests and expressions of anger on the part of the GLBT community and their friends and family have been impressive. Thousands of people have taken to the street and their anger is justified. I don’t think it’s smart, however. I see no evidence at all that it’s going to help advance the cause of gay rights.
If anger won elections, John McCain and Sarah Palin would now be the king and queen of America. McCain was practically bursting blood vessels in the last few speeches of the election and he lost in a landslide. Anger turned off the independents at the same time it fired up the base. Just because anger is justified doesn’t mean it’s wise. That’s where discipline comes in. As Obama said repeatedly, “Don’t boo – vote.” In other words, channel your emotions into something more productive then the easy road of making loud noises.
WWOD? The McCain campaign threw a fresh pack of lies at Obama every chance they got. The number of death threats towards him increased as the angry McCain campaign cranked up the rhetoric. If anyone was justified in their anger, it would have been Barack Obama. He could have struck back in anger and fired up the Democratic base to take to the streets to protest racism and lies.
Obama could have gotten angry. He didn’t. He won. We all won.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lee-stranahan/four-lessons-gay-marriage_b_142469.html
Enemabag Jones
Where’s CHURCHILL-Y when we need him?
ChristopherM
It should be pointed out that the statement here that blacks were a “major factor” in the win for Prop 8 is simply not accurate. CNN’s exit polls vastly overrepresented the African American vote, and fails to point out that had black voters voted in the same percentages as other ethnic groups, Prop 8 still would have passed. Does it hurt that their percentage of Yes votes were higher? Yes. Do I understand it? No. And it is not acceptable. But there is a lot of blame to go around, and black voters are near the end of that list.
Here is an extremely exhaustive analysis of the CNN exit polls and of what actually happened. Of course, most of these nutjobs won’t actually read anything this in-depth because it is easier just to think you have permission to use the N-word.
http://myleftwing.com/showDiary.do;jsessionid=9874480084675B3B3303E7B80DE72B9D?diaryId=23580
Mark
I don’t doubt Geoffrey’s story, but this is not pandemic. I have attended numerous rallies, every one of them more diverse than a Pepsi commercial, and every one of them peaceful and civil. I saw this topic pop up on Rodonline a few days ago, It’s taken on a life of it’s own over there. Again, I’m sure Geoffrey’s story is most likely true, but to suggest this type of behavior is widespread is disingenuous at best.
Nitesurf
Despicable.
Chapeau
Fucking unbelievable !!
fredo777
Stupid hypocritical bastards.
What a crock
Okay. Priority. Now that Queerty has been taken over by The Heritage Foundation, one must read these Gant rants for what they are.
He heard???? some gay man use the N word????
He…some Gant is defending the Mormoms. Put two and two together.
So now Queerty is not only defending the Mormons who we KNOW FOR A FUCKING FACT that they funded this bit of bigotry, but now Gant tries to turn it around and teach us how to protest.
The economy sucks. Boycott anyone who advertises on this bigoted site.
Don’t talk to me about varied opinions until I see a pro gay post on the website for the Heritage Foundation or the Mitt Romney website.
This is a case of checking out the messenger before believing the message.
Wolf
Not only do I doubt geoffreys story. I am shocked and disgusted with the NEW EDITOR for printing it. if today is any indication of the way Queety is going to be heading the suckage is going to be HUGE
asa1973
@Wolf: Doubting Geoffrey’s story is like a black person doubting stories of homophobic actions carried out by another black person.
fredo777
@Wolf:
What a load of shit. This isn’t the first tale of the “n” word being uttered by outraged gays post-Prop 8 passing + it likely won’t be the last.
If we can continue to spread CNN’s ‘70% of blacks voted for Prop 8’ story, we can also give weight to this one.
afrolito
I don’t doubt this story at all. Racism in the gay community is an epidemic. Those morons shouting nigger were just as racist on nov 3rd as they are today.
JJJJ
I make no secret that I think the African-American community is a dysfunctional mess, and that the queerty guys Hauslaib and Belonsky have been buffoons in trying to push the idea that gay and black causes are somehow supposed to be united, but on a personal level: calling someone a “nigger” really is wrong in so many ways. Especially because it’s such a belittling meanspirited put-down to decent black individuals, both gay and straight.
Wolf
@fredo777:
Thats the whole thing. WE SHOULDN’T BE SPREADING CNN’S 70% of blacks voted for Prop 8′ story.
My God people open your eyes. Its NOT about color. The Majority of Blacks, Hispanics and Whites did so because of RELIGION! Necause THE CHURCH either Catholic, Mormon or Baptist told them to do it.
I don;t blame the race. i blame the RELIGION and as long as we alow such disection into making abotu Race instead of looking at the whole picture the more its going to splinter us and make us look bad.
As far as the N word being uttered. EVERY GROUP has a few crazies. Even gays. Considering the amout of people protesting and the anger 1-2 isolated incidents as disgusting as they might be is bad and does not speak for the voice of the Gay community andf neither do these articles that keep poping up to TAKE THE FOCUS AND BLAME OFF THE RELIGIOUS ANGLE.
Chiot Moite
If gays start using the N word again (as seems to be the case) expect the rest of California to follow. Social taboo? Nope! Trendy if the gays are saying it.
And ultimately, I can’t help but think that the blacks did it to themselves by stabbing one of their life long allies in the back.
Chiot Moite
@WOLF:
I think people are angry at blacks specifically because “they should know better” (having once been the targets of the same types of legislation and tactics.)
Mark
Chiot Moite,
You are an asshat. The “blacks” didn’t stab anyone in the back. Some blacks voted for prop 8, and so did a mountain of Mormons, a shitload of old white people, most rednecks, and even a couple of self-loathing, spineless gay lunatics (I talked to a couple of them).
Theo
How are we supposed to move forward?! Come on! I’m sure that blacks voted against it because, (1) the anti-Prop8 people didn’t frame the argument correctly and, (2) many of them are taught this in the church. By calling them names its not going to help.
Does this mean that those Black gay men and women are booted out of the community now!
The one time that everyone needs to get together to make change and a few stupid/racist people push people away.
What a crock
Don’t buy into this racist shit that Queerty and Gant are trying to stir up. It doesn’t exist.
It is his attempt to divide our community.
michael
So, because a handful of gay people are using the N-bomb we are supposed to sit here and believe that the majority of gay people are going to go out and start doing the same. I am sick of painting entire groups as being one thing because of the actions of a few.
Sure, their are racists gays, homophobic blacks and Mormons who love us. This is all turning ugly because we are making a decision to stereotype everyone and using what happened in California to justify it. We have got to stop looking at everything in terms of us and them, we have got to get this anger out and move on. Hating back, even if they, who ever “they” are hate us is not going to accomplish anything but keeping the whole victim/perpetrator cycle in tact. We need some intelligent leadership here. I am all for protest, I am all for expressing our disappointment and I am all for action. But there have been those in the past who became greater than the hate their group may have had, greater than the group they represented and did great things. Dr. King was one and I believe that his spirit is available to us. If his beloved wife was any indication he is. It would do us well to learn from him, study him and take action in those ways because it worked. Oppression is oppression, discrimination is discrimination and truth is truth. Does not matter if its a matter of race, religion, sexual identification or orientation. Wrong is wrong and we can overcome this but we have to approach it like adults, not pissed off adolescents.
Jadele
As a black lesbian I would like to point at that if the no on prop 8 people had bothered reach out to the black community you would have known that you did not have an ally. Also black people take their religion very seriously do you really expect us to say ‘forget my upbringing I don’t want to discriminate’ no! You clearly don’t know black people very well. Maybe you should examine your own prejudices before you start pointing fingers.
Wayne
Not even a shred or journalistic integrity around here is there. A possible utterance of the “N” word, and now Gay Protests are targeting Blacks? That’s ridiculous! I wonder how many times gay men have been called a faggot by a bigoted hetero Black guy? Should all those homophobic experiences be posted on Queerty?
Jadele
Hmm
Wolf
Japhy Grant so far today has done nothing but post opininated, negative and racially charged stories here on Queerty that do the Gay Community absolutly no good as a whole.
I will be leving Queerty now. If anyone wants to join me I’ll be with Andy at Towelroad.
http://www.towleroad.com/
Japhry while you may be cute….you suck man.
Kdogg
Interesting that so many gays sit and ask “how could black people not better understand out struggle” but the second black people marginalize them they instantly marginalize right back… throwing out the “N” word and telling them to stay out of their side of town.
HATE BREEDS HATE, end of story. We need to stick to love, pride, and focus on demanding rights.
Rock
Racism is wrong. Homophobia is wrong.
If anyone is throwing around the ‘N’ word, then they need to STOP!
It won’t do any good.
fredo777
@Chiot Moite:
“If gays start using the N word again (as seems to be the case) expect the rest of California to follow. Social taboo? Nope! Trendy if the gays are saying it.
And ultimately, I can’t help but think that the blacks did it to themselves by stabbing one of their life long allies in the back.”
That is a crock of shit. Noone should be given a pass to use that word because of the voting actions of some black persons, regardless of how upset you are over the results.
fredo777
@What a crock:
“Don’t buy into this racist shit that Queerty and Gant are trying to stir up. It doesn’t exist.
It is his attempt to divide our community.”
What a crock, indeed.
Racism is very much alive in the gay community + turning a blind eye to it is just stupid. Racism is in every community, to some extent. Be honest about it.
fredo777
@Wayne:
“Not even a shred or journalistic integrity around here is there. A possible utterance of the “N” word, and now Gay Protests are targeting Blacks? That’s ridiculous! I wonder how many times gay men have been called a faggot by a bigoted hetero Black guy? Should all those homophobic experiences be posted on Queerty?”
Psssh. So, it’s OK to piggy-back off of CNN’s dubious claim that 70% of blacks voted for Prop 8, but this topic is off-limits, somehow? Not.
Dan
Have to agree— that headline is ridiculous. A guy hears a word at a rally and you put that the protests are “targeting” blacks? Thanks for giving Drudge Report or some other conservative blog a great idea. It’s fine to do the story, but if you do many sensational, misleading headlines like that — I’m going to take queerty off my daily read. There are plenty of blogs who aren’t doing this crap.
Also — Am I the only one that finds it a little off-setting that the guy in the story calls people “clones” at the same time he’s lamenting being called names himself?
kevin57
I agree that hatred breeds hatred. This whole thing is ugly and unproductive.
However, many of the same folk here decrying hatred being shown to blacks have no problem whatsoever showering hatred on anyone who’s religious.
That too is ugly and unproductive.
fredo777
@Dan:
Actually, the headline is factual. Prop 8 “protesters” targeted blacks. The headline didn’t state that the entire protest targeted blacks; but some of its protesters did.
story is fake
I was all over that march and saw nothing of the kind. Big lie by haters.
Mark
If queerty is going to regurgitate suspect headlines from other sources, I’m done here. I have been following this issue for a few days now. It’s complex and it’s important, and deserves a lot more thought than it was given here, which consisted of an introductory paragraph and a link to another site.
Jadele
I’m sexy as hell of course I’m arrogant. I was not speaking for all blacks but you lyin to yourself if everything I said was not true for most. I believe I made a point of saying that on my last post. But basically all arrogance aside…I was trying to say that you really need a better understanding of black people than what you have because you’ll never get anywhere with us the way your going about it now.
fredo777
@Jadele:
haha
Point taken.
MLK
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYggWJZZSw8
Andrew
What we need to learn from this is that the democratic party should not just take us for granted as a voting block. They need to earn our votes and money.
Edward
That’s horrible. Why aren’t they attacking the majority of the people who voted yes on prop 8 which are apparently white. I still think the minority community would’ve voted no on prop 8 only if the campaign focused a bit more on the black and hispanic community. I live in LA and I felt that was the biggest reason why prop 8 passed. It didn’t reach out to the other communities. I guess the LGBT community still needs to work on diversity. Let’s not make being gay or lesbian a white person thing.
Juan
Let’s work on diversity. Be the better minority group that doesn’t persecute another group. Don’t repeat history and make the same mistake!
sparkle obama
@Wayne:
is this ” wayne” from WOW report??
what a sick phony you are!
Brandon85
“Interesting that so many gays sit and ask “how could black people not better understand out struggle” but the second black people marginalize them they instantly marginalize right back… throwing out the “N” word and telling them to stay out of their side of town”.
It’s not interesting to people who don’t have a black and white (no pun) view of ethics. If you hit me, and I hit you back, I am not wrong. It’s not the hitting that’s wrong, it’s the lack of due cause. In this case the marginalization by one side is unjustified, period. That said, this method is not really effective when used toward “groups” instead of individuals.
Wayne
So, it’s OK to piggy-back off of CNN’s dubious claim that 70% of blacks voted for Prop 8, but this topic is off-limits, somehow? Not
—
You are joking right, CNN and EVERY OTHER MAJOR NEWS ORGANIZATION uses those same numbers 70% of Blacks in California DID vote YES on Prop 8. NOT A SINGLE NEWS ORGANIZATION HAS REPUTED OR RETRACTED ANY OF THEIR POLLING DATA, AND THEY STAND BY THEIR REPORTING. Now we are supposed to compare CNN and EVERY OTHER MAJOR NEWS ORGANIZATION with that of one student saying he was called the “N” word. Please, Your grip of the facts, is more than a bit off.
Wayne
It also seems a bit strange that if Protesters were “targeting” blacks, that this is the ONLY report I’ve read about it. And others who were at the protest, have said they saw or heard NOTHING like this.
Strange, indeed.
Dan
Since when d0 posts that criticize the choice of headlines get deleted on queerty? All I said was that putting “targeted” in the headline was ridiculous and irresponsible — and boom, my post is deleted by the new powers that be? What’s up with that?
Dan
Sorry — my bad — didn’t look up far enough! Good to know.
fredo777
@Wayne: Hell no, I’m not joking.
It has been refuted plenty of times + — newsflash — “major” news networks can fuck up, too. If you honestly think that a random exit poll sampling can speak for the entire black voting population of the huge state of Cali., then perhaps it is your grasp of the facts that is way the hell off.
And, btw, this is not the only report of people hearing the N-word used by gays following the passage of Prop 8.
If you read the DailyKos post I linked to the other day, you’d know that the author also commented on several occurences from members of that very site. Troll a few other gay blogs (including this one) + it’s easy to see that there is a lot of hostility toward blacks to be found. Strange, my ass.
If blacks have to be “honest” about homophobia within our community, gays also have to be honest about the occurence of racism in ours.
Yes, I used “ours” twice, being that I belong to both communities.
msim
I believe this is just a new license for racist folks to come out. Sadly, some are gay. Just like some homophobes are black.
Out in Greenwich Village with 3 friends on last Saturday night. Got asked, very aggressively by 2 white men why “you people” were so homophobic and religious.
I said I wasn’t, my friends weren’t, our families weren’t. They said we were lying. We said we were gay. Again, they said we were lying. WHAT?
Since 3 of us are Jewish and 1 is Muslim, we said black people aren’t as homogeneous as they seem to think. Just like gay folks.
Here we are, oppressed groups, fighting over crumbs instead of going for the main recipe.
fredo777
@msim:
Boom. My point exactly.
denise
I find it interesting that some on this forum think that this is fake. It’s a known fact that racism exists in the gay community just like it’s a known fact that homophobia exists in the black community. As a black lesbian, I’ve experienced both.
sparkle obama
stop scapegoating!
http://www.jackandjillpolitics.com/2008/11/stop-scapegoating-black-folk-on-proposition-8-updated/#more-4586
quit being fake, you bitches!
how dare you try to tell Us to respect or relate to you
after the way the “white” gay community has marginilized and disrespected Black people, transpeople, “poor” people and even lesbians.
you trash need to check yourselves.
there’s a new sheriff in town and you need to be respectful & grateful.
trust, you headless chickenheads -this prop 8 mess will not stand, but gays need to change their one-issue mania and get with the program
ps
some Black people may fear & loathe gay sexuality, but plenty of you (we) gays need to change our attitude and look in the mirror.
exactly how have you handled yourself with Black people??
exactly!
please don’t be fake; the world is watching.
ps
gays like that “wayne” from WOW report are sick, prideful, entitled, disrespectful racists.
do you think he voted for obama???
he has no right to criticize Black people for not rushing to support his badly framed cause.
gosh!
sparkle obama
“Wayne” said:
>>It also seems a bit strange that if Protesters were “targeting” blacks, that this is the ONLY report I’ve read about it.<<
w*yne, you yourself have been “targeting” Black people all year on the WOW report blog.
your inane, childish attacks against president elect obama, michelle obama, rev. wright, rev. donnie mcclurkin and now, the california Black “community at large, have been so disrespectful, so dishonest & so counter-productive.
if you haven’t “read about” any “reports” regarding “targeting Blacks”…
bleah.
i can’t keep up the sarcastic tone…
you & gays like you suck
and *are* the problem.
frame the issue correctly & respectfully and the people will fall in line.
you need to seperate church from state first.
your own entitlement and sulky, lapsed-christian/judgmental/
culturally-tone-deaf attitude makes you value the wrong things, like calling equal civil unions “marriage”.
you guys are too proud to go in thru the back door and you want christians and african americans to kiss your ass.
you foolishly counted on hillary (!) to make your fantasy happen.
snap out of it!
there is a new sheriff in town.
you don’t have to sit down, but you do need to quit acting ugly and disrespectful.
we are on the right track with obama’s coming administration.
we all need to try to be like him and fight hate with love.
i’m surprised that rupaul isn’t talking about gay marriage.
i think he could make a difference in shaping gay attitudes toward the more traditional african american communities, and vice-versa.
– or is this only about gay rights – not trans??
i’m asking!
James
Gee — Racism exists in the gay community. Like we didn’t know that. This was an isolated incident that takes the focus off of where it should be. We always going to have our shit going on internally. The skank called the other one who called him a n—-r a clone. Gays and Lesbians, Black gays and white lesbians, latino dykes and white lesbians, trans and white lesbians, black lesbians and white lesbians. See, those white lesbians are all up in everyone’s shit. None of that matters.
Stupid post by some jackass brother who can’t take a little name calling now and then. N_gger, if he didn’t have a club in his hand when he said it, you goin be alright. Now let’s get back to work and peacefully take to the streets. I don’t have to love your white ass and you don’t have to love mine, but let’s cut this stupid shit that don’t do nothing but stir the pot. Shame on the lame-ass idiot that put this stupid waste of time up anyway. Grow a pair, bitch.
sparkle obama
i don’t know what you’re saying!
i’m mixed, Black, white & other.
i see both sides and more.
“white” gay raciists need to remember that they are “minorities” all year long – not just when our rights are being voted on.
too much “pride” and no humility will get us nowhere.
there is plenty of anti-gay feeling in the Black communities – fomented by the church, traditional machismo and also in reactionary response to “white” cultural hegemony.
if “white” gays want understanding from Black peple, they need to quit crying and blaming and start reaching out in a real way.
b*tches need to Try Harder!
no more prideful racism, please.
that’s so ugly!
sparkle obama
>> I don’t have to love your white ass and you don’t have to love mine, <<
this is the attitude that led some Black people to vote for prop 8
and some non-Black gays to *not* vote for obama.
we need to tart talking for real and showing respect & LOVE.
sandy
Why pick on one group? In the bay area Muslim leaders told their members that go to mosques to vote Yes on 8.
http://510report.org/2008/11/08/fremont-muslims-vote-for-prop-8/
So it is not just one group that voted yes on 8. I think that attacking individuals, religious groups and ethnic groups is backfiring on us who want to have marriage.
We need cooler heads or we might face more of a back lash.