Videos: GLSEN Takes On "That's So Gay"
We have tackled the subject of the appropriateness of the phrase "That's so gay" on GayGamer before. It has become a fairly commonly used phrase for something derogatory much to the chagrin of many gay people. You hear it everywhere and of course it seems to run rampant as an insult during online play. Well, the GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) has finally had enough and have launched an ad campaign titled "Think before you speak" targeting teens about the misuse of the word. Celebrities like Hillary Duff and the hilarious Wanda Sikes have gotten on board and appeared in the public service spots. I applaud GLSEN and the celebs for bringing more attention to this matter and I sincerely hope that it will serve to make some changes happen. You can see the Wanda Sikes clip above and make the jump to check out the Hillary Duff spot and one other featuring someone I don't recognise.
Fruit Brute
Posted to Hot Stuff, Miscellany, Videos on 13 October 2008
· Comments (22)
Other stuff like this: ad, glsen, hillary duff, insult, public service, that's so gay, wanda sikes
Yeah, I couldn't find out who she was either. I read a few articles about the ad campaign and even went to the website. It seems like only Wanda Sykes and, especially, Hilary Duff are mentioned.
So basically the homosexual community now has exclusive dibs on the word "gay"?
Dude, that's so monochromatic...
That IS monochromatic!
Or, wait... it could be that we, as a community, object to a word that we use to describe ourselves ALSO being used as a disparaging remark or descriptor for something unfavorable. That we don't appreciate a facet of our personality being synonymous with bad haircuts or ugly shirts. Perhaps we object to the trivialization of our sexual orientation as something to be shunned and discarded in everyday speech. Or maybe it's just that ignorance and misinformed word use annoys and upsets us, as we see something we identify with being used as an insult or joke.
Nah. That'd be gay.
@GhettoLevis: No one said anything about "exclusive dibs." The objection is to the use of the word in a derogatory form.
@EshuElegbara: Well said...
I love Wanda! She is such a funny woman and has some great views on gay marriage.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IHdaJOZe7E
well, it's about freakin' TIME. i wish this campaign would have started a year or two ago. it drives me crazy, and i'm ashamed to say that i tend to just NOT say anything about it rather than call people on it in-game. yeah, i'm a wimp. i'm trying to be better, though, and people like EshuElegbara and this people behind this campaign will certainly help me step up.
So by far the best, and least corny ad was the one with the unknown person.
Yeah, the third one with the unknown person seems to feel the most natural.
roll these ads out across the world...
hey gaygamer you should have an archive for these sorts of things.
Great ads, but good luck to the campaign. I'm still on a similar campaign to get my own three brothers to stop using that word in such a way :-( They think my sensitivity is due to being a girl. Which started me on an anti-sexism campaign . . . *sigh*
The ad was too PC in an odd way. I think the point whould've been much stronger if Wanda Sikes actually used "that's so black/jewish/male/insert group of choosing." But I imagine the ad creators thought people would've wasted too much time crying racist/sexist/somethingist and ignored the point of the clip. Shame.
When did Hilary Duffs' voice get so sexy?
Yeah, the ads are a little corn ball, but let's not overlook the fact that they're trying to attack this issue at all is a huge, huge step. Hillary or Wanda aren't gay themselves or even particularly dependent on gay audiences so it isn't as if they had to put themselves out there like this. It's not the end of the conversation but it's a better start than anything that's come so far.
These ads are awesome!
Hrm, great ads, however, they are a bit diminished by YouTube's inclusion of "Bulgarian Lesbian Teens" in the "related videos" feed... Anyone else catch that, or is it my perverted computer trying to feed me porn at work again? I've told it to behave...
PS: Wanda Sykes is awesome.. I saw the special that the "same sex marriage" bit was in, it was great.
She says it best: "If you don't believe in same-sex marriage, then don't marry someone of the same sex" ;)
One small step towards harmony...
Are there any adds with Male actors? or are we stuck with Hilary Duff? (not that I'm complaining or anything, she does looks hot in that ad)
To be fair, that little statue was pretty gay...
@NickDynmo ...ker-hyuck!
This ad campaign is gay.
There are all kinds of idioms and slang usages of words which might annoy people. Most of them don't result in an ad campaign, because the Jewish community has better things to protest than people who talk about "jewing the price down", and the black community has better things to protest than people who talk about "black humor" or a "black mood".
When you look at how much the gay community can afford to concentrate on things like marriage laws and offensive slang, you have to admit, things are not all that bad. Gay protests aren't really about fundamental human rights anymore; they're about people being... well, rude. If that's the biggest issue facing gays today, shouldn't we be having a celebration of some sort?
Perhaps we could have it annually, in California or something.
well most learned people agree that "jew down" is a derogatory slur which isn't the case with gay. also "black" when used in that context isn't racially motivated.
i also think it's interesting that you seem to imply marriage equality is somehow a trivial thing.
Congrats to the celebs (and the unknown who is oddly familiar from somewhere.. just can't put my finger on it)! This is, as others mentioned.. a HUGE step!
I'm forever pulling up teenagers for the use of it.. and when online gaming if someone says 'yer man that's gay'. I always am quick to hit back with "oh.. so you think it's wearing a paisley pastel gucci shirt and has it's own stylist?" or some other stereotyped statement, just to draw attention to the fact that their usage is inappropriate.
Most of the people in my WoW guild (even though they're mostly straight) are quick to do it to others too now after hearing me do it!
Educate and spread the love! ^_^
And since when do we get exclusive ownership over the term gay?
Let them say that something's gay. I do it all the time, if anything it's helped me wrangle in acceptance. EX:
Guy #1: Dude, that's so gay.
Guy #2: Dude, shut the f#&* up! That guy's gay!
Guy #1: Crap! Um... uh... I'm not a homophobe or anything, I didn't mean anything by it or nothing--
Me: No, no. You're right. That's pretty damn gay.
Guy #1: ^-^!
*scene*