In a trial that opened this week here in San Diego, four female firefighter are suing the city for damages because they were allegedly sexually harassed by drunken males while participating involuntarily in the Pacific Beach Street Fair parade.
The parade is "a sexually licentious event, where raucous and lewd behavior, conduct and dress is permitted," according to the firefighters' lawsuit.
Over the course of three hours, they heard statements such as, "you can put out my fire," "you're making me hot," "give me mouth-to-mouth," "you look hungry, why don't you have a twinkie (from a man wearing a "Girth and Mirth" t-shirt)," and "blow my hose."
When they refused to respond to the crowd, some in the crowd turned hostile and started shouting, "F--- you firemen" and others began "flipping them off."
City Attorney, Mike Aguirre, in a court brief, suggested that if the firefighters were feeling harassed, it was because of the negative reaction their lawsuit has garnered from the public and colleagues, including allegations the four are "money-grubbers."
Further, in opening statements, “We won't make a claim that they're outright bigots, but we will show they don't agree with the city's anti-discriminatory policy and that they're offended by the (redacted) lifestyle,” Aguirre told the jury.
Is Aguirre serious? My god, we can’t believe he actually said that? Is he essentially blaming these women for the behavior of these drunken savages in PB? Never mind the timing issue… like how is this hostile behavior rationalized when the suit was filed as a result of the alleged harassment, but is he also intimating a smear against these women in that second statement?
Did he really say that?
Well, yes… and… no.
He actually did say all the above but not in the context it was presented.
You see, the firefighters in question weren’t female but rather male and the event they were forced to participate in wasn’t a drunken hetero riot at the beach but rather the annual gay pride parade in Hillcrest.
Feel better, now? Feel like things have normed-out, again? Feel like you can go about your business knowing no one really got harassed and that these city employees have completely over-reacted to a little good-natured, tongue-in-cheek ribbing?
Good. So do we.
Post cobbled together from here, here and way over.......................... here.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Because "Gay" means never having to say you're sorry
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6 comments:
Great presentation of story! I re read the first part a few times, to make sure I was getting it right. Then I read to the end. Nicely D, nicely d.
'Dawg
I would say it's a morally equivalent situation.
So it's another case of a bunch of homophobes complaining, is it? They probably won't vote for Obama, either, those racists!
Yep. A gay friend back at an old work place and I used to talk about this all the time. "Dude, you do realize that the odd nutcases at these pride events are killing the rate at which your community is accepted into the mainstream, right?" "Yeah, I know", as a look of defeat would cross over his face knowing there was nothing he could do about it.
I gotta believe -- and know for a fact -- that most gay people don't do anything more crazy than go to work, come home, have a beer, and watch the ballgame on the tube. At some point, these rank-and-file members of the gay community have got to sit the "fruits and nuts" down and say "You're killing it for us. Cool out."
Otherwise, BwD will continue to find splashy headlines with photos at its blogging whim from here to eternity.
- Not that there's anything wrong with that Mongo
Of course there is nothing wrong with that, what are you implying?
Of course there is nothing wrong with that, what are you implying?
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