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Homophobia on ice
Weir attacked for his masculinity by gay analyst
By
Jim Buzinski
Homophobia
is sports is sad. It's even sadder when it's practiced by an
openly gay person. But that's what has happened to American
figure skater Johnny Weir.
Weir was
slammed on a recent cable TV skating show called "Nancy
Kerrigan's World of Figure Skating." The culprit was Mark
Lund, the openly gay founder of "International Figure
Skating" magazine and most recently a judge on Fox's
"Skating With Celebrities."
In
discussing the upcoming U.S. men's figure skating nationals,
the show featured a segment on Weir, a three-time defending
champion. As usual, Weir was his flamboyant self, discussing
part of his long program "loosely based on Jesus Christ."
That was enough for Lund to crucify him a segment later with
Kerrigan and host Lou Tilley.
"I can't
wrap my head around how overly out he is without saying he's
out," Lund said. "I'm sorry, but I don’t think he's
representative of the community I want to be a part of. …
And who designs these outfits? You cannot compare yourself
to the Lord's savior as a figure skater."
I'm not
sure what "community" Lund is referring to – the gay
community? The skating community? The community of bitchy
queens? (watch
the YouTube video and you'll see why Lund fits that
category).
Lund went
on to sing the praises of Weir's chief rival, Evan Lysacek,
who projects a much more mainstream and conformist image on
and off the ice.
Lysacek
"has a classical elegance and masculinity on the ice I think
we need to see in male figure skating. I'm saying I don't
need to see a prima ballerina on the ice." Kerrigan chimed
in that Lysacek "can relate to more people," while "Johnny
is a little more out there."
Here's why
what Lund said smacked of homophobia and insecurity – it
says there can be only one standard of masculinity and the
Lund's of the world are threatened by someone who stretches
the boundaries. But real masculinity comes in all forms, and
sometimes it wears a boa. In Weir's case it comes packaged
in a terrific athlete with a real dramatic and artistic
flair.
Lund's
comments also shows fear that mainstream America won't
accept an athlete who doesn't fit the narrow standard of
what it means to be a male and an athlete. The reality, at
least in figure skating, belies that notion. The media loved
Weir at the 2006 Olympics and NBC made Weir a household
name. People laughed with Johnny as he played the diva with
a wink and a nod, not at him.
I have said
that if Johnny Weir is not gay, then neither am I. But, like
anyone else, it is his right to come out or not, and on his
own terms. Weir knows that the closet cases who still hold
sway in skating could punish him if he shows more guts than
they ever have. As Lorrie Kim
wrote for us a year ago: "What hasn't changed is
that many of the officials, judges, and skating federations,
especially in the U.S., make it clear that they prefer male
skaters to look 'masculine' and will be harsher on
effeminate-looking skaters when it comes to giving marks or
desirable competitive assignments."
In his
book, "On Edge: Backroom Dealing, Cocktail Scheming,
Triple Axels, and How Top Skaters Get Screwed," openly gay
skating judge Jon Jackson wrote: "I would later experience
first hand, in the skating world, that instances of
homophobia by gay men toward 'suspected' gay men are not
unusual at all."
Prior to
last year's Olympics, Jackson added: "The skaters absolutely feel that
pressure. This comes across in every discussion I've had
with a gay skater, that they really feel that they have to
present themselves as a 'passable' masculine skater."
Lund fuels
this tyranny of masculinity by mocking Weir for his costumes
and choice of programs. I would have expected such ignorant
comments from a Focus on the Family type, not an openly gay
man. It makes Lund's remarks that much more pathetic.
Jan. 10,
2007
Tip of the
hat to
AfterElton.com for alerting us to this video.
Jan. 15
update:
The producer of the ice skating show has
apologized for comments made by Lund about Weir.
Jerry Solomon, executive producer, on behalf of Nancy
Kerrigan and the cast and crew of "Nancy Kerrigan's World of
Skating" send this in response to the outcry from Weir's
fans: "We understand that Mark Lund's comments on
"Reflections Off the Ice: Countdown to the National Skating
Championships" have caused quite a reaction. Anyone that
knows Mark knows that he is not mean-spirited nor prone to
personal attacks. In fact, as a former skater himself,
founder of International Figure Skating Magazine and a
regular commentator on the world of skating, Mark has a
history of promoting and protecting the sport and its
participants.
"If Mark's comments regarding Johnny Weir have offended
anybody we sincerely apologize. Nancy made this known
publicly on CN8's "Your Morning" show on Thursday, January
11. In case there is any doubt, we all think very highly of
Johnny and had actually hoped he would join us on the show
to help us preview the Nationals (he was not available).
Johnny Weir is and has been a great and entertaining US
Champion and we wish him all the best in the upcoming US
Nationals.
"Finally, we want to thank you for taking the time to let us
know your feelings. It is our intent to report on figure
skating and promote the sport through a variety of means. We
have no interest in deliberately causing controversy or
raising issues that are not in the best interests of the
sport. We agree that in this instance, Mark's comments may
have crossed the line. We hope you accept this apology in
the spirit that it is given and hope you will enjoy future
shows that try to bring you behind the scenes and on the
ice."
Weir fans caused such a dustup that they went onto Lund's
Wikipedia entry and caused a debate about whether it
should be deleted or not. --Jim Buzinski
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