Enough is Enough

Okay, things are getting out of control. How many people are going to lose their jobs because people are offended over words?

MSNBC reported today that Isaiah Washington's contract on Grey's Anatomy was not renewed by ABC. (See here.)

The whole thing revolves around Mr. Washington having referred to T. R. Knight, a fellow cast member on the show, a faggot backstage during the Golden Globe Awards. This, of course whipped all the gay rights groups across the country into a furor. Many of them were just frothing at the mouth, and demanded an apology (rightfully so).

Mr. Washington did apologize. Further, he sought therapy, met with the activist groups (including the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network and GLAAD), and made a public service announcement regarding the episode. He went out of his way to make amends. He certainly didn't treat this episode like it was no big deal.

But all of that is, apparently, not enough. In addition to doing all of that, he must, apparently forfeit his job before anyone will be happy. That pisses me off. This whole thing has gotten completely out of hand.

Look, I'm gay, and I get ticked off when someone throws words like "faggot," "queer" and "homo" around with every intent on insulting someone. But when that person makes an apparently honest and sincere effort to rectify the situation, I'm willing to give them the benefit of a doubt. Any reasonable person should be willing to do so as well.

But our society has become so ridiculously obsessed with this insane idea of political correctness that we single out these high-profile cases and decide to make examples of them. It's wrong.

People are entitled to say what they like. It's called free speech. We are also entitled to disagree. So what if the guy said something insulting? Get over it. We have become so soft that we've forgotten what it means to have the balls to just be adults, realize that those kinds of statements reveal something about the kind of people who say them, and shake it off.

Inevitably, someone will tout the whole "Words lead to violence" argument. Statistics, please. Give me hard facts and not your wild conjecture. I get enough unsubstantiated conjecture from the White House. Give the numbers and we'll debate that then.

Sure, words have power. But only if you let them. All we have to do is reach down, grab our genitals, and remember that we're not children. We don't run home crying to mommy every time someone says something mean to us. We deal with it like competent adults, and treat each other fairly. This reaction was way over the top.

Firing this guy (or, more accurately, opting not to renew his contract) was WRONG. It was overkill. Give the guy another chance. He's done all the right things to make it right. How many times can you bludgeon the poor guy with the same thing before you've made your point?

We're all just a bunch of cry-babies, and we need to get over it. It angers me to think that folks think that, because I'm gay, I support this decision. I don't. Give the guy his job back. Give him another fair chance. Let him prove himself. Any one of us would want to be treated the same way. Stop making a scapegoat out of him.

And for God's sake, people, grow a thicker skin.