Unfortunately, I reread LZ Granderson's
article again this morning, and it
again infuriated me. I think I rushed through my first post concerning this article, so I'll take the time to better articulate my opinion about both this article and the issue at hand. And I, of course, will not fail to hint at my overall impression of Mr. LZ.
First, I will easily and without hesitation state that I believe LZ Granderson to be a racist as well as a homophobe. Despite his GLAAD and NLGJA awards for online journalism, his repugnant, elitist attitude toward white gay men surely, in my book, merits reconsideration of his GLBT leadership. In fact, I'd be lying if I said my hope-of-all-hopes didn't involve Mr. Granderson confidently Googling his name only to find this unfortunate reference as his first search return. LZ Granderson = racist. Fitting and, after his article, a title well-deserved. He needs to know how unabashedly ignorant he is post haste.
Second, lets dissect his article a little, shall we? Paragraph one, the intro, states "
Far from flowing rainbow flags, the sound of Lady Gaga and, quite honestly, white people, stands a nightclub just outside of Wicker Park in Chicago, Illinois, by the name of The Prop House. The line to get in usually stretches down the block, and unlike many of the clubs in Boystown and Andersonville, this one plays hip-hop and caters to men who may or may not openly identify as gay, but without question are black and proud."Right off the bat, LZ masters the fine art of segregation. Let me rewrite this from a white male perspective to see how traditionally racist this type of diction typically is:
"
Far from flowing Hennessy, the sound of Lil Wayne and, quite honestly, black people, stands a nightclub just outside of Lincoln Park in Chicago, Illinois, by the name of Sidetrack. The line to get in usually stretches down the block, and unlike many of the clubs outside of Wicker Park and the South Side, this one plays pop and caters to men who certainly identify as gay, and without question are white and proud."Do you think anyone could say such a thing, on CNN no less, and be perceived as a rational, open-minded, and non-racist adult?
No way in hell.
Back to the way LZ wrote it, in Chicago, there are two areas: one undignified area is for the trivial, assuming, unintelligent white gays whereas the other area is for the smart, "proud," closeted black gays that only like other black gays. Don't mix the two. No one in Prop House is mad at Obama for delaying gay rights (because, hey, Obama is a brother therefore he's always good in the hood),
but every white guy at Sidetrack has their panties in an uproar for surely selfish and immature reasons, complaining about some inconsequential, unimportant issue like marriage rights or serving in the armed forces openly and proudly. Stupid stuff like that, according to LZ. Apparently, LZ still can't catch a cab and has been turned down from job after job, all because of the color of his skin. Whatever. "
Still, rarely has criticism regarding Obama and the GLBT community come from the kind of person you would find standing in line at a spot like The Prop House, and there's a reason for that. Despite the catchiness of the slogan, gay is not the new black. Black is still black."
The kind of person you would find standing in line at a spot like The Prop house. Wow. That one sentence speaks volumes. All the black people in club lines throughout Andersonville and Boystown are
really missing out on the some heavy-duty enlightenment, apparently. Somebody should tell them.
Back to my point, if
anyone comes across as being whiny, it's LZ. His "
gay is not the new black, black is still black" motto sounds something like a whine from the cancelled game show "Who Wants to be the Most Oppressed Minority?" I can hear Regis in the background asking, "
Is that your final victim, I mean, answer?"
Get over yourself LZ. Black is a minority in the USA. Gay is a minority in the USA. Latinos are a minority in the USA. The disabled are a minority in the USA. ETC,
ETC. We're all subordinate to the majority. African American injustices shouldn't be any more important or handled any more swiftly than any other groups' injustices, even though in most cases, they typically are. The public and political sensitivity concerning race is much higher than that of sexual orientation. But, if you ask me, African Americans
are not the elite minority group, and should not be treated as such. How about a unified response toward inequality in general?
Apparently, LZ doesn't think there's a unified approach to inequality, "
everybody wants to sing the blues, nobody wants to live them." So, what he's trying to say, in a very self-defeating way, is that because GLBT folk haven't endured the struggles and persecutions as African American folk have, GLBT in no way deserve swift justice? We haven't earned it? Interesting notion, but ask any member of the Jewish community about singing the blues. Yes, America had slaves and regarded blacks as property, but Jews were imprisoned and slaughtered by the millions, just for being Jewish. So, LZ, does a Jew trump an African American? Is that the way it works? The minority with the saddest story gets first crack at the microphone? No doubt, they both trump a white gay. It's going to be forever until I get up on stage! Ugh.
So, are African American's owed more than the GLBT folk? What if you're an African American GLBT? Wow this is tricky. It's like choosing between brownies or fudge.
And, this is an important lesson in history: it hasn't been a mere
40 years of struggle by gay Americans...its been hundreds of years that gay men and women have been silenced by our government. Its been hundreds of years that gay men and women have been viciously persecuted and shunned by religious groups. There have been thousands of gay-related murders and assaults stemming from hate crimes and intolerance. There have been thousands of suicides of gay children and adults committed out of fear and shame for being gay in both a country and time that doesn't understand or qualify being gay as a real or normal aspect of life, but rather a choice or lifestyle. So don't even set up a 40 vs. 400 scenario, LZ. It doesn't work and it's entirely offensive to say such a thing. It hasn't
just been 40 years of being gay in America. First of all, it has indeed been 40 years since GLBT Americans have taken a strong, public, outspoken stance against intolerance, hate, and injustice. Secondly, for every GLBT man and woman, it has undoubtedly been a
lifetime of undeserved inequality, for both those in and out of the closet, and continues to be day by passing day.
Yes, African Americans have endured 400 years of victimization and inequality, but, you know what? African Americans have every single guaranteed right a white man or woman does. African Americans witness no exceptions to individual freedoms just because of their skin color. Unequal civil rights no longer exist for African Americans. It has been written out of the books. The same
cannnot be said about the GLBT community. So, by you, LZ, in an attempt to trump the minority groups by saying "We (African Americans) are the biggest and most deserving victims of oppression, so shame on you white gays for trying to make federal headway for your own, unimportant, selfish agenda" is not only ridiculous and shameful, but dangerous. You are reversing the role of a traditional racist and homophobic American. You, yourself a gay man, are shunning, quieting, and demeaning your fellow gay Americans, but even better, just the white ones. The black gays "get it."
?
We all get it. A long time ago, black people were slaves. A long time ago, black people were treated unjustly. A long time ago, equality did not exist for all citizens. You're 100% right. But you know what? It's 2009. Racism may still exist, but it's VERY unpopular. And if you don't believe me, ask any white person to say the N-word, openly, and see what the public response is. Ask Michael Richards what the public response was. Ask Don Imus what the public response was. Largely, our nation doesn't condone racism in any facet whatsoever. Now, try to say the F-word in public. See what happens. You're right, not much. You may get fired from Grey's Anatomy, but that's about it. A slap on the wrist. "
That's not PC!" That's all.
In fact, to some,
being gay doesn't even exist. It's not a real thing. Like I said before, it's a choice, a lifestyle. You're born straight and you choose to be gay. Simple as that. Or, if you claim to be gay it's because you're siding with the devil, or it's a sexuality disorder or an identity crisis. Something's wrong with you. Ask any religious person, and they'll tell you that gay people burn in hell, a notion and opinion that is deemed okay and acceptable
by many Americans. Ask most state government officials in this nation and they'll tell you that if you're gay, you can't get married to your partner, regardless of how much you love him or her. That's the
law. They may even go as far to say that they
personally don't believe you should be married, just because you identify as gay. Take that! That's a political platform often seen. Nope, you can't receive health benefits or tax benefits or even state-recognition as a single family unit, simply because you're gay. Yes, you're an American, but you're also gay. You know, the one permissable discriminator of life, liberty, and happiness. The minority our Constitution
doesn't protect. And don't even think about having kids, you'll just warp them because, surely, gay men and women are all pedophiles and freaks. Also, according to many, especially the talking heads on Fox: don't give GLBT any rights or liberties because it'll be seen as a
gateway right: soon gays will undoubtedly try to marry goats or have sex with horses or something equally sick and perverted like that.
All because you identify as gay. Now, if you identify as black...you can be married, you can certainly have children, and you can praise the Lord all day long and, when you die, you will go straight to heaven. Lucky you.
Again, if given the choice, I'm sure most gay people would rather be black than be gay. Why? Because being black is OK in America. No one gets to choose their skin color. We have to love all the colors of the rainbow. Unless that rainbow has anything to do with being gay. If that's the case, you can hate and be completely unsupportive and intolerant as much as you want without any social repercussion whatsoever.
So, in conclusion, LZ, for you to write this article suggesting that being gay is just one small bump in the road on America's path toward equality, I find you and your article to be appalling and ass backward. You can own your dissatisfaction with race and equality in America all day long.
But, don't even think about disqualifying or lessening the seriousness of other minority groups' honorable plight for equality and justice within their own country. We all, as humans, deserve equal, civil rights,
right now, regardless of your personal hierarchy of social importance. Black doesn't trump gay, the n-word doesn't trump the f-word, Obama is my President too, and regardless of his skin color, he is responsible for representing the gay agenda, especially as a self-described "fierce advocate for GLBT Americans."
Prove it.
LZ Granderson: get off your high horse. You're a minority, just like me. There's no line, there's no precedence. We're all here together, and we all need to be heard.
Love,
Ryan
PS: You better believe I'll be at the Prop House in the
very near future. Can't wait to chat.
PSS: I would love for you, my readers, YouTube subscribers, and Twitter followers, to post your own thoughts about this article via any web outlet of your choosing. Make sure to let me know where I can find your postings.
PSSS: You can email your thoughts concerning LZ's article, or even my blog posting, to LZ himself: L_Granderson@yahoo.com
