Comedian and 30 Rock actor Tracy Morgan has been accused of homophobia.
Kevin Rogers reported on his Facebook page that, while attending Morgan’s stand-up act in Nashville, Tenn., Morgan went on a viciously anti-gay rant. Rogers alleges that “Morgan took it upon himself to mention about how he feels all this gay s*it was crazy and that women are a gift from God and that ‘Born this Way’ is bulls*it, gay is a choice, and the reason he knows this is exactly because ‘God don’t make no mistakes.'”
Morgan sent the following statement (through a spokeswoman) to Windy City Times: “I want to apologize to my fans and the gay & lesbian community for my choice of words at my recent stand-up act in Nashville. I’m not a hateful person and don’t condone any kind of violence against others. While I am an equal opportunity jokester, and my friends know what is in my heart, even in a comedy club this clearly went too far and was not funny in any context.”
However, some are not satisfied with an apology. Human Rights Campaign Vice President of Communications Fred Sainz said in a statement, “Tracy Morgan exercised extremely poor judgment and he did the right thing by apologizing. But that’s just not enough. He’s a role model and Morgan now has a responsibility to make amends for his horribly hurtful and dangerous ‘comedy’ routine.
“He also needs to go further than his apology and correct the record: no one should feel ashamed because they are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender and they should definitely not become a victim of violence. Words have consequences and Morgan should be held to a higher standard. Until he does something meaningful, his brand will remain tarnished.”