I read with great interest the article about DJ Brian McLaughlin’s mean-spirited comments about Aaron McCorkle. Not only did I read the News Argus article, but I went online and also read an editorial in the
Winston Salem Journal, an article on the daily tarheel.com and watched a news report on WXII12-TV.
Here in Lexington, I am part of a group of black gay men and women working to put on a program in September that examines homophobia in the African American community.
McLaughlin’s comments underscore the disdain that many black men have toward anything gay. And worse, they see nothing wrong with uttering comments like this.
Not long ago, I read that actor and comic Tracy Morgan said he would stab his son to death if the boy spoke to him in a gay voice. And there’s no shortage of popular rap artists who have made anti-gay comments
in their songs.
I commend McCorkle for being openly gay and not being ashamed to say he’s gay, whether he wears dresses or not. It is mind-numbing that people, especially black people, still feel that it’s perfectly OK to mock someone because they’re gay. This is why so many black men lead double lives, living publicly as heterosexual men but kicking it with another dude when no one’s looking.
Again, thanks for bringing to my attention this situation at WSSU.
Thomas Tolliver
Lexington, KY