Johnny Weir And All His ‘Fabulousness’
Posted by Michelle Moquin on 2nd March 2010
This article and video was brought to my attention. Johnny Weir, a men’s figure skater in the Winter Olympics this year, who is openly gay and proud of it, has fans from around the world that admire and adore him for his flair and flamboyance.
However, his fabulousness…love that word used to describe him, also makes him a target for homophobic remarks. It’s bad enough that homophobes joke and put down gay people making ignorant comments under their breath, but when it’s done live, there’s no backing out of it: Your true feelings are now public. Busted.
Two sports commentators, Claude Mailhot and Alain Goldberg of the RDS network, had the gaul to go after Weir on the air saying that they think, “All the boys that skate will end up like him,” and “We should make him pass a gender test at this point.” Of course and no surprise, they later apologized.
And once again….same old song and dance. I am so sick of people saying or doing something, getting busted for it, and then false apologizing for their actions, when if they hadn’t gotten called out, there would be no apology whatsoever and their rude, homophobic, racist, you fill-in-the- blank actions would continue. Tiger Woods and a few politicians seems to come to mind but that is a whole other topic.
Johnny Weir held a press conference Wednesday in Vancouver to address remarks made by two veteran sports commentators during the Olympics who suggested that his fabulousness (our word) is a bad example of, and for, male figure skaters and joked that he should undergo a gender test. [The comments] have a Quebec gay rights group contemplating filing a complaint with the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council.
Weir began by joking that he grew stubble for the press conference to show that he’s a man, but his tone quickly got serious. He’s not asking for an apology. He says he believes in free speech and wouldn’t want these men fired for expressing their opinion. (“I’ve heard worse in bathrooms and whatnot about me,” he quipped.) He just wants them to think before they speak — and to imagine the damage they could do to people like him and to generations of children whose parents may not give them the same freedom and support his did if they think their child will only be ridiculed for being who he or she is.
“I would challenge anyone to question my upbringing and question my parents’ ideals and feelings about bringing up me and my brother, who’s completely different from me but taught very much the same way that I was,” Weir said. (The conviction in his voice during that statement had to have made his parents as proud as any medal he could’ve won.)
There’s a reason he’s calling attention to the situation: “Even my gender has been questioned. I want that to be public because I don’t want 50 years from now more young boys and girls to have to go through this sort of thing and to have their whole life basically questioned for no reason other than to make a joke and to make people watch their television program
,” he said.
He summed up his message — ”I hope more kids can grow up the same way that I did and more kids can feel the freedom that I feel to be themselves and to express themselves” — and his belief that the concepts of masculinity and femininity are old-fashioned. “There’s a whole generation of people that aren’t defined by their sex or their race or by who they like to sleep with. I think as a person you know what your values are and what you believe in, and I think that’s the most important thing.”
How do you think Weir handled the controversy? I say beautifully. For once, the focus went beyond the superficial “You can’t say that on TV!” headlines to make the media stop and examine the meaning and effect of what was said. Weir understands it’s not just children who have to have self-confidence, but also their parents. If Weir speaks in high schools after the Olympics — and he should — I hope parents are encouraged to come to the assembly. I think his controlled, articulate passion might actually reach them.
Readers: Comments? Anything to add? Blog me.
Jenny: Happy to hear my blog made it in your top three for the morning. Minus the fag, I feel the same way. Enough said about the loo :) My blog gets me going too…I can’t imagine waking up and not writing. That would just be very strange to me….like something big was missing in my life.
As far as being a proud woman for the first time…continue to be. Women are beautiful and amazing, and so many other things….and sooner than later, the world will realize that, if I and so many others can help it.
Stephanie: I agree with you on all three counts.
Petro: Well said and so do I.
Zen Lill: In regard to your comment “…repugs I know usually have good health care…”, my point exactly. It is obviously because they have it.
Charles: I can feel your rant as I read. And it is justified. I am so tired of people trying to convict OJ over and over again. Let it go. The guy was found NOT guilty. But you’re right; it’s not enough. They want their day to bury him…they want their pound of flesh, as you say.
I’ve written about OJ a few times here. You might want to click over and check it out. Feel free to come back and jump on your soapbox anytime.
Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my ‘loyal’(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.
Gratefully your blog host,
michelle
Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)
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Posted in Entertainment & Laughter, Good Reads and Good See'ds, Human Rights and Equality, Love, Sex & Relationships, Style | 22 Comments »