Jake Shears, GLAAD criticize Azealia Banks' Perez Hilton slur
Mon. January 7, 2013 7:40 AM by OnTopMag.com
jake shears
Scissor Sisters frontman Jake Shears and GLAAD have criticized rapper Azealia Banks' use of a gay slur against celebrity blogger Perez Hilton.
The 21-year-old Banks hit Hilton, 34, with the slur when he got involved in a Twitter war between Banks and fellow rapper Angel Haze.
"@PerezHilton does your butthole whistle?" Banks messaged. "Like is your butthole so stretched and raggedy the air whistles when you move?"
"@AZEALIABANKS Some of your music is cute, but your attention-seeking ways are pathetic and hurtful," Hilton responded. "You drag while others choose to uplift!"
"@PerezHilton you need to quit it."
"@AZEALIABANKS Or what, boo? I'm a drop a diss track about you right after I poo! Oops, just shat myself with my gigantic hole! Feels good."
"@PerezHilton omg u should just kill yourself ... Like for real," she replied, then added: "@perezhilton lol what a messy faggot you are."
She later explained that "A faggot is not a homosexual male. A faggot is any male who acts like a female. There's a BIG difference."
Shears, who is openly gay, tweeted: "It all about context. And right now, I'm sorry, but context is not on your side."
"Donna Summer was ostracized for a decade from words she used about her gay fans. Too bad she didn't have Twitter to recant them immediately."
GLAAD, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, chided Banks in a blog post.
"Our society knows that 'fa**ot' is a derogatory word for gay men, and in this case it was used to attack someone in a very public altercation with hundreds of thousands of fans and young people following," the group said. "It is an ugly, archaic word that was used to stigmatize a population of people who suffer high rates of violence both here in the U.S. and abroad. As far as we've come in this society, seeing it used by an artist many young people may look up to is painful, but even more so for those young fans, many of whom GLAAD has heard from. GLAAD has reached out to Banks' representatives, and is working to compile stories of fans and teens who wanted to respond to the word and let others know what it feels like when they hear it."
The 21-year-old Banks hit Hilton, 34, with the slur when he got involved in a Twitter war between Banks and fellow rapper Angel Haze.
"@PerezHilton does your butthole whistle?" Banks messaged. "Like is your butthole so stretched and raggedy the air whistles when you move?"
"@AZEALIABANKS Some of your music is cute, but your attention-seeking ways are pathetic and hurtful," Hilton responded. "You drag while others choose to uplift!"
"@PerezHilton you need to quit it."
"@AZEALIABANKS Or what, boo? I'm a drop a diss track about you right after I poo! Oops, just shat myself with my gigantic hole! Feels good."
"@PerezHilton omg u should just kill yourself ... Like for real," she replied, then added: "@perezhilton lol what a messy faggot you are."
She later explained that "A faggot is not a homosexual male. A faggot is any male who acts like a female. There's a BIG difference."
Shears, who is openly gay, tweeted: "It all about context. And right now, I'm sorry, but context is not on your side."
"Donna Summer was ostracized for a decade from words she used about her gay fans. Too bad she didn't have Twitter to recant them immediately."
GLAAD, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, chided Banks in a blog post.
"Our society knows that 'fa**ot' is a derogatory word for gay men, and in this case it was used to attack someone in a very public altercation with hundreds of thousands of fans and young people following," the group said. "It is an ugly, archaic word that was used to stigmatize a population of people who suffer high rates of violence both here in the U.S. and abroad. As far as we've come in this society, seeing it used by an artist many young people may look up to is painful, but even more so for those young fans, many of whom GLAAD has heard from. GLAAD has reached out to Banks' representatives, and is working to compile stories of fans and teens who wanted to respond to the word and let others know what it feels like when they hear it."
Article provided in partnership with On Top Magazine