Jeff Lewis Says Gay Group GLAAD Is Oversensitive
By On Top Magazine Staff
Published: September 11, 2012

http://www.ontopmag.com/article.aspx?id=12943&MediaType=1&Category=22

Jeff Lewis, the openly gay star of cabler Bravo's Flipping Out and Interior Therapy, has described gay rights group GLAAD as oversensitive.

In an interview on Larry King Now, Lewis discussed the July 2011 incident which resulted in his parting with the group.

"Basically I was in an interview and was asked about one of the worst homes I've ever done. And when I purchased the home there was somebody squatting there who happened to be a transgender crack addict. Now GLAAD was upset that I used transgender and crack addict in the same sentence. But that was the truth. And then where I went wrong is that throughout the article I referred to the person as a he/she, which I did not know, I guess, is extremely offensive."

[...]

"I feel like some people are unnecessarily attacked by GLAAD. And I think they're a bit overdramatic and oversensitive. And I think that alienates people. And I think that negates the cause," Lewis added.

Quote from: Laura91 on September 12, 2012, 11:24:01 AM
This is one of the rare times I have to agree with this sort of thing. If the person is trans AND a crack addict then YES they happen to be a transgender crack addict. It isn't transphobic it is merely stating a fact. It would make as much sense as someone saying that I was a transgendered noise addict. Not to mention that no one forces you to smoke crack. If you do it then you are an addict. I have ran across many drug taking people and I NEVER met a recreational crack smoker. You stayed away from it entirely or it ran your life. There is no middle ground with that trash and anyone who tells you that there is with a straight face is a liar.

I don't think it is merely stating a fact. I don't know how intentional it was on Jeff Lewis' part but lumping in the 'transgender' makes the tail all the more juicy. The question I ask myself is if the person being transgender is relevant or not. Had the person been wearing a GOP button would he have reported the person as a republican crack addict? Or how about ethnicity, sexuality, hair/eye color or musical preference? We wouldn't think to report any of these attributes because we see them as irrelevant, but when the person is transgender then for some reason or another people think it is worthy of mentioning. You know, it wasn't just a crack addict, "it was a transgender crack addict!!! How messed up is that yo???"

A few years ago I got into it big time with a news paper journalist after he reported how a transgender woman had killed her husband by forcing him to swim laps in their pool until he had a heart attack and died. I sent the journalist an email asking him to explain why he felt it was necessary to report that she was a transsexual and whether he would think to include information about her being adopted as a child if that was what was out of the norm about her. He was mildly offended about my suggestion (I had looked him up and concluded he was likely adopted as a child himself) and told me it would be irrelevant and not worth mentioning. He went on to say that he though her status as a trans-woman was relevant because "who's to say she didn't do what she did because she was a transsexual?"

The fact of the matter is that in many peoples minds we are psychotic weirdos demanding the lotion be put in the basket, and in my opinion news reporting like this only help reinforce this image, even if it's just about stating facts.

Quote from: Zythyra on September 12, 2012, 09:34:39 AM
And then where I went wrong is that throughout the article I referred to the person as a he/she, which I did not know, I guess, is extremely offensive."

Calling someone a he/she is offensive, since he seems determined to imply connotations that this person's disposition as "transgender" was unnatural. Although I'm sure there are exceptions, I believe most people would appreciate a single gender identity than an implicit and possibly aggressive "whatever the hell that person was" statement.

When it comes to whether or not the gender identity of this individual was relevant, I'd think of it this way - people judge people by their appearance. Odds are, Jeff Lewis noticed what he considered qualities that were immediately outstanding, and made the relation. I'll also assume this Jeff Lewis found evidence of this person smoking crack, rather than assumed this person smoked crack simply to add a comedic element to his observation.

It would take some sense of clairvoyance or inquiry to know if this person was adopted or not, so that's why similar details are probably not regarded. Unfortunately, not everyone's above offensive cheap thrill-exaggerations like this.

Regardless, I'm a sod for free-speech, even if it's offensive