Sykes to Morgan: What You Said Isn't Free Speech
BY Lucas Grindley
June 10 2011 11:45 PM ET
Wanda Sykes took to Twitter on Friday night to express her disappointment with fellow comedian Tracy Morgan, who she said is “just a dumb comic.”
The lesbian television star, who came out publicly during an anti-Proposition 8 rally, points out that Morgan went on his antigay tirade during a show in Tennessee, where a spate of legislation has attacked gay people.
“I fault the TN lawmakers. They've created an anti-gay environment,” she wrote on Twitter. “Don't believe Tracy would be so ignorant in LA, because we have a mayor, a city council, and police chief who believes we are all equal.”
The notorious “Don’t Say Gay” bill bars teachers from talking about sexuality, and another bill repealed a law that had prevented companies from discriminating against people based on their sexual orientation.
Sykes compared Morgan’s statements — which included his insistence that he would kill his own son if he were an effeminate gay man — to speech that the Supreme Court has said can be rightfully banned.
“I do believe in free speech, but for a youth in TN or any other numerous place, Tracy just yelled, ‘Fire,’ in a crowded theater,” Sykes wrote.
Morgan apologized for his comments but has since been rebuked in statements by fellow 30 Rock star Tina Fey and by NBC management. Gay rights groups say he owes more than an apology.
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