Larry Johnson, a running back for the Kansas City Chiefs, has been suspended from the team until November 9, due to his use of gay slurs. The first slur was committed on Twitter, and the second was muttered under his breath, apparently during a press conference. Johnson’s agent will be appealing the case, saying that Johnson will already be losing $600,000 due to his suspension.
Can it be that people still don’t get that we’re living in one of the most media friendly eras of all history, under constant scrutiny? There are cameras everywhere. Pretty much everything you say on Twitter is searchable, and watchdog groups live to pounce on even the slightest misconduct by a public figure. You can’t open your mouth to say even something innocent without the concern of it being taken out of context and enlarged, much less a blatantly offensive slur.
At the same time, it’s hard to know whether or not this punishment is too little or too much. A two week suspension doesn’t seem like that much, really. But is it in proportion to what he said? He was obviously making comment on a particular person; he could probably have chosen any other non-specific slur to use. Regardless, a professional player needs to represent his team in a positive light. So is this a serious punishment, or just a slap on the wrist?
Comments
Keith
October 29th, 2009 - 2:10:59 PM
This PC stuff is getting rediculous. If a White player had called a fan the n-word, does anything really think there would be repercussions? Give me a break!
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Greg
October 29th, 2009 - 2:25:07 PM
@Keith -- Yes, they definitely would. Racial slurs are beyond defense. Same with slurs against sexual orientation. It may sound PC, but these words are highly offensive, and should be avoided, especially in the public sphere. In my opinion, the punishment is probably a little high in relation to the crime, but at the same time I think it is a good thing. It makes an example and shows players that this sort of language will not be tolerated.
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Insanity
October 29th, 2009 - 3:37:42 PM
Men who are roided out and paid to beat the shit out of their fellow man can't use the word 'fag'. Makes perfect sense.
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Nick
October 29th, 2009 - 4:44:04 PM
@ "probably a little high in relation to the crime" It's not even close to a "crime". So what if he said something offensive? Players say offensive things all the time. God forbid anyone say something that wouldn't even be censored on cable television about gays though.
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Paul
October 29th, 2009 - 5:23:58 PM
Nick, I'm sure it's hard to understand the power of racial (and gay) slurs, what with (minor assumption), you being a straight, white male. But believe it or not, when you're not born with such privileges, such derogatory terms can not only be quite offensive, but they can play into damaging stereotypes and other systemic problems as well. Fact is, the world is (mostly) controlled by men like you, and when slurs like this are not only prevalent, but accepted too, by the above demographic, it changes the dynamics of the whole situation. For example, let's say a bunch of gay dudes were prejudiced against straight, white men. So what, what are they going to do? Nothing, because they don't have any power. However, switch the roles around (to what reality looks like) and it's a huge difference. Because white men, do hold power, and their prejudices do effect those they're prejudiced against. Just a thought.
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Bill
October 29th, 2009 - 7:24:12 PM
We have been treating each other like crap for so long, we forgot that, like it or not, we are all in this together. Imagine if people were simply kind to each other. What a different world this would be. And we could all just agree to be kind.
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