Tracy Morgan Apologizes For Anti-Gay Rant: ‘I’m Not A Hateful Person’
June 10 2011, Published 8:30 a.m. ET
Tracy Morgan apologized Friday for a vile anti-gay rant during a recent stand-up show.
“I want to apologize to my fans and the gay & lesbian community for my choice of words at my recent stand-up act in Nashville," the 30 Rock personality said in a statement on Friday. "I’m not a hateful person and don’t condone any kind of violence against others."
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“While I am an equal opportunity jokester, and my friends know what is in my heart, even in a comedy club this clearly went too far and was not funny in any context.”
As RadarOnline.com previously reported, Morgan launched into an ugly homophobic rant during his stand-up routine at Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee last Friday, when he allegedly said that homosexuality was "bullsh*t," and that if his son told him he was gay, he’d “pull out a knife and stab that little n*gger to death."
Several gay rights groups released statements Friday morning, requesting the actor’s management investigate the claims, and if true, called on Morgan to apologize.
Audience member Kevin Rogers -- who attended the show with his partner and a friend – first wrote about the incident on Facebook, insisting: "The sad thing is that none of this rant was a joke. His entire demeanor changed during that portion of the night. He was truly filled with some hate towards us.”
In his post, Rogers said he has been a fan of Morgan since his days at Saturday Night Live, as he claimed he “figured at some point the gay jokes would fly and I'm well prepared for a good ribbing of straight gay humor.
"I have very thick skin when it comes to humor; I can dish and I can take. What I can't take is when Mr. Morgan took it upon himself to mention about how he feels all this gay sh*t was crazy and that women are a gift from God and that Lady Gaga’s equal rights anthem ‘Born this Way’ is bullsh*t, gay is a choice, and the reason he knows this is exactly because ‘God don't make no mistakes’ (referring to God not making someone gay cause that would be a mistake).
“He said that there is no way a woman could love and have sexual desire for another woman, that's just a woman pretending because she hates a f*cking man.
“He took time to visit the bullsh*t of this bullying stuff and informed us that the gays needed to quit being p*ssies and not be whining about something as insignificant as bullying. He mentioned that gay was something kids learn from the media and programming, and that bullied kids should just bust some ass and beat those other little f*ckers that bully them, not whine about it.
“He said if his son that was gay he better come home and talk to him like a man and not he mimicked a gay, high pitched voice or he would pull out a knife and stab that little N (one word I refuse to use) to death.
“He mentioned that Barack Obama needed to man up and quit being all down with this just because he has a wife and two daughters.”
Rogers also says that Morgan’s rant was met with applause and cheers of “You go Tracy!” from many people in the audience, although he says, about a dozen people walked out of the show.
Rogers ended his Facebook entry by stating: “I'm not angry... just very very very disappointed.”
This is not the first time Morgan has been accused of making anti-gay comments: In a set at New York’s famed Carnegie Hall in 2009, Morgan said that homosexuality was a choice, spurring several audience members to walk out in protest.
RadarOnline.com contacted the venue where Morgan performed last Friday, and a spokesperson told us, “The Ryman Auditorium regrets that people were offended by statements made by Tracy Morgan during his June 3 appearance.
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“The Ryman does not control the content presented by people appearing on its stage, nor does it endorse any of the views of, or statements made by, such persons.”
Morgan is due to perform next at Connecticut’s Foxwood’s MGM Grand Theater on July 2.
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