Being complimented by gay men loosens bowels of macho firefighters
September 30, 2008 - 9:14 am
The trial of the four SD firemen who are suing the city for allegedly being sexually harrassed in last year’s Pride parade will probably go to jury today, according to the Union-Tribune. The story contains one of those passages that defies comment:
“[Firefighters] Kane, Allison, Hewitt and Ghiotto testified that they suffered headaches, anxiety, irritable bowel syndrome and other problems because of the parade experience.”
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OK, I’m totally pro-gay rights and love the Pride Parade and think these firefighters are probably homophobes (and just plain no fun); however, if I’d been forced by my boss to participate in a parade in which men hurled lewd comments at me — in the manner I imagine happened at the parade — I would be pretty disturbed. Sure, the guys at the parade probably had no idea these firefighters weren’t willing participants and didn’t find it amusing. But don’t characterize their distress as a reaction to “compliments.” It probably didn’t feel that way to the firefighters. They probably felt the way most women feel when they pass a construction site. Humiliation is very upsetting and can lead to a lot of physiological symptoms, including loose bowels. You can disagree with the way they feel about gays (and I do), but it’s really not fair to belittle their reaction to what can totally reasonably be seen as humiliation. Remember, they were ORDERED to do this.
Raquel, you don’t see the irony of the symptom? Wow. Remind me not to invite you to any parties.
As for the firefighters: had they just sued for being forced to participate, I would not belittle them, but suing because you suffered “distress” when some guy yelled, “You’re making me hot!” or were “forced to see men in tight shorts dancing provocatively and other men kissing and hugging.” Give me a break. These guys are supposed to be tough? You think they’d be complaining if it had been girls in bikinis in Pacific Beach “harrassing” them? Yes, I think the “distress” of these homophobes is laughable. But should they be forced to ride in parades? That’s an issue. I’d rather they be forced only to fight fires & rescue people. Riding in parades of any kind should be voluntary. Nothing like a loose-boweled parade-rainer to dampen the fires of fun.
Don’t get me wrong, the headline is pretty funny. (Hey, at least I kill the fun by offering a long, detailed explanation diatribe about how IBS was something quite different than “loose bowels”!) You know, I probably would have sucked it up and pressed for a no-forcing-people-to-be-in-parades rule and let it go at that. I think it’s kind of sissyish for them to press for pain-and-suffering damages over this. But I don’t doubt they might have had these issues.
I bet your parties are fun. Please don’t take me off the list!
IBS doesn’t sound as funny as loose bowels; poetic license.
Their lawyer is a religious right winger named Charles Limandri, a Duke Cunningham & Rick Santorum campaign donor with an anti-gay agenda, so there you go.
ok raquel, you’re hereby re-invited to the party.
Anxiety and IBS? I’ll take that over the post-Pride scabies I woke up with any day…
FYI readers: Rumor has it around the CB offices that Enrique caught the scabies from a dirty firehose.