The CBS-TV reality show Big Brother is embroiled in controversy after one of the house’s residents, Jeff Schroeder of Chicago, called another contestant an anti-gay slur.
According to a statement from the LGBT-rights organization The Empowering Spirits Foundation (ESF), Schroeder yelled to Russell Kairouz, “Way to show your true colors, f**. … f*** you, you fucking homo f***ot,” and later, “You fucking jealous f**s.”
“Schroder’s anti-gay slurs are extremely insensitive and foster a climate of hatred and intolerance toward the LGBT community,” said A. Latham Staples, Executive Director at ESF. “Schroeder works in advertising, and he should know that the use of these defamatory remarks are dehumanizing and can have a negative impact on an impressionable audience.”
However, Schroder is not the only one to say something anti-gay. In an interview with People magazine, evicted contestant Braden Bacha said of openly gay housemate Kevin Campbell—on whom Bacha threw water—”He’s flamboyantly gay and you can’t punch a gay guy, let alone push him. I just wanted him to get out of my face.”