04/19/24
June 25, 2004
Terry, will you marry me? Chris.: Even if the game itself is still "the last refuge of the macho", the organization is reaching out to the modern-day community. Tonight's Toronto-Montréal matchup is "the first ever major North American sports promotion held in conjunction with the gay and lesbian community" that isn't AIDS-fundraising-related.
posted by DrJohnEvans to baseball at 08:00 AM - 13 comments
I thought so at first, but then I decided that the writer was going for two androgynous names to illustrate the whole "three possible gender combinations" idea. (Probably because most of the homophobes in Toronto read the National Post instead of the Star.)
posted by DrJohnEvans at 08:19 AM on June 25, 2004
I was at this Atlanta Braves game where a block of 1,700 tickets were purchased in order to try and win the 2006 Gay Games . Isn't this a non-AIDS event too? Just wondering how they are qualifying their event. There were a bunch of empty seats though because a decent part of the Braves fan base is on the God squad and boycotted. But it went off without incident from where I sat. And just a thought here, but do you ever get the feeling that sometimes they do want confrontation so that the story gets better coverage?
posted by usfbull at 08:25 AM on June 25, 2004
And just a thought here, but do you ever get the feeling that sometimes they do want confrontation so that the story gets better coverage? Who's "they"? The Gay Community, which thinks and acts and speaks as one? ;-)
posted by lil_brown_bat at 08:41 AM on June 25, 2004
Who's "they"? The Gay Community, which thinks and acts and speaks as one? ;-) Thanks for pointing that out. I meant some in the gay community. And I also meant some in the media.
posted by usfbull at 08:54 AM on June 25, 2004
Thanks for pointing that out. I meant some in the gay community. And I also meant some in the media. That the media loves controversy is one of the most valid generalizations ever made. It's almost like saying that a farmer likes moderate amounts of sun and rain: it's what makes the crops grow. As far as the gay folks go, however, if you want to go to a public event with your significant other, you basically have three options as to how to do it: 1) Go as a couple, but pretend to be "just friends". Don't stand too close, don't hold hands, don't hug, don't use terms of affection, don't show in any way that you're connected. 2) Go as a couple and don't bother to pretend to be something you're not, and experience stares, insults, shoddy service, and possibly physical violence. 3) Go with a large enough group of people like you that you don't have to do 1) and the bigots don't have the stones to do 2). So, you see, while gay people going to public events in large, identified groups may often create controversy, it's actually a way to avoid confrontation.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 09:13 AM on June 25, 2004
That Terry 'n' Chris thing was about ten trillion times too cute. It should've been "Fred, will you marry me? Barney." Or any other unambiguously gender-restricted names. I mean, he writes: "Fans may be forgiven for confusion tonight, if during the Blue Jays 7:05 p.m. game against the Expos at the SkyDome there is a Jumbotron scoreboard proposal reading, "Terry, Will you marry me? Chris."" Which isn't going to confuse anybody because they're androgynous names. He destroyed whatever point he thought he could make with Terry and Chris, blissful gay couple.
posted by Justin Slotman at 11:05 AM on June 25, 2004
What, we're not counting the WNBA as a major North American sport?
posted by sashae at 11:08 AM on June 25, 2004
I dunno, I thought it was a funny picture: all the homophobes in the bleachers saying "I'm confused! Are Terry and Chris two guys, two girls, or is one a guy and the other a girl? I don't know whether to cheer enthusiastically or spit in disgust!" and then confusedly wandering off to drown their sorrows in $8.25 tallboys while tipping generously. Maybe I'm reading too much into it tho'.
posted by DrJohnEvans at 11:27 AM on June 25, 2004
What, we're not counting the WNBA as a major North American sport? Does anybody? /requisite chauvanistic response
posted by grum@work at 01:08 PM on June 25, 2004
Do the networks?
posted by garfield at 01:32 PM on June 25, 2004
That's the best thing about this. There is no controversy, no 'community leaders' voicing there displeasure, no boycotts of baseball, no advertisers pulling their ads, no big deal. Sometimes I think this city really is pretty special.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 02:43 PM on June 25, 2004
Holy cow! I didn't notice this before... This is a Richard Griffin article that doesn't make me want to burn the newspaper in effigy! This is a rare day indeed! For those that don't know, he's probably the worst baseball writer in the city of Toronto (or nation of Canada). He constantly gets his facts mixed up (or deliberately misuses them) and has a real hatred for J.P. Riccardi and "the new breed" of GMs. Most people assume it's because they traded his favourite player, Alex Gonzalez.
posted by grum@work at 03:51 PM on June 25, 2004
Nice milestone. But I don't think the names Terry and Chris are good choices for the homophobe freakout the writer was going for in the lead.