Leave Gaycrest alone

Comedians can get away with most things, but sometimes mean jokes are just bullying.

I love the provocative ladies — the late Phyllis Diller, Joan Rivers and Kathy Griffin. They go too far, but there’s something cathartic about it. When questioned over whether it was appropriate to make 9/11 jokes so soon after the tragedy, Rivers was adamant that laughter was a part of the healing process.

But there’s a fine line between pushing the envelope and being a douchebag. Like when Sacha Baron Cohen was on The Howard Stern Show and joked about Ryan Seacrest, saying, “He apparently has an asshole like a collapsed mineshaft.”

There’s just something about a “he’s a faggot” joke that I find to be in bad taste. Because when you make him being gay a joke, it makes being gay a joke. It’s offensive, and not in a jocular or particularly clever way. But unfortunately, Cohen often confuses being moronic with comedy.

Keep Reading

How ‘North of North’ is introducing Indigenous queer dramedy to a global stage

Actors Anna Lambe and Zorga Qaunaq on learning about forgiveness and queerness through their award-winning show
Barbara Hammer

Barbara Hammer’s endless influence

The lesbian filmmaker made a radical difference by making work that reflected her real life. A new documentary is cementing her legacy
Collage with two hands holding a bat, swinging towards a baseball with a dollar sign on it, against a blue background with a net, baseball player and the Olivia logo on an outfield sign

Why the WPBL partnering with a lesbian travel company matters

Support from lesbian brands and bars harks back to the queer history of women’s sport leagues
Confluence cover

‘Confluence’ brings Vancouver’s queer history to life

The late Alex Turner and his husband, Lucian Childs, have written a unique and rewarding ode to mid-century gay British Columbia
Advertisement