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Chelsea Handler’s “jokes” about Chaz Bono being on “DWTS” has many wondering what kind of LGBT ally she really is
Chelsea Handler has hosted the LA Gay & Lesbian Center’s annual gala and is generally known as being an LGBT ally.
But she is getting a lot of pushback for remarks she and others made on her nightly E! show Chelsea Lately about transgender male Chaz Bono being cast on ABC’s Dancing With the Stars.
Via the GLAAD blog:
Last night’s episode of Chelsea Lately repeatedly made a mockery of Chaz Bono’s transgender identity when discussing the transgender advocate’s upcoming appearance on Dancing With the Stars.
Host Chelsea Handler herself started the discussion off with a joke about Chaz Bono’s identity and anatomy, but was joined a few moments later by two members of her all-comedian panel in using transphobic humor to mock him.
Handler’s introduction:
Chelsea Handler: The Dancing with the Stars cast has been announced and, this is season 13, it includes Chaz Bono, otherwise known as Chastity Bono [laughs] before she got her penis [laughs]….
Out comedian Fortune Feimster soon said that she was personally most looking forward to watching Bono on the program, saying:
Fortune Feimster: I’m, I’m like you, I’m excited about Chaz Bono. Cause I used to watch the show…
CH: I wonder why. [laughs]
FF: It’s like reality gold, he’s like four reality shows in one, like who doesn’t love that?
This was immediately followed by jokes from comedians Bill Bellamy and Jo Koy, who has previously apologized for using anti-gay language:
BB: I mean who do you vote off? Him or her? I don’t know which one you want to do. [laughs]
JK: Does, does he/she have both parts? Like, like he’s like ‘I don’t want to use my penis, let’s use the vagina tonight.’ Like [laughs] I don’t know.
Comments
(All comments are reviewed before being published, and I review submissions several times per day.)
Leelawadee says:
Greg, I do hope that you will keep us up-dated on GLAAD’s public response to Chelsea Handler (AND guests) remarks. I am a new follower of your site, and have been impressed by your depth of personal contact with your subjects, as well as your accurate reporting, and timely comments. Plus your design is user-friendly and a pleasure to read. –Leelawadee [former Californian, now a long-time ex-pat in Chiang Mai, Thailand].
2201 East says:
Kind of like a pit bull-you never know when they are going to turn…
BG says:
She is never really funny. She gets her laughs from being mean not insightful. I find her boring, doing the same snotty routine every night. Give me humor that satirizes, pokes fun or is smart. CH is just needless snark.
Charlie says:
I don’t understand why Chelsea would participate in such humor. Its not even funny. Just stupid, and truly ignorant. I guess she is playing to the smallest minds.
DJF says:
I was so disappointed to hear these lame, ignorant jokes coming from Chelsea and all at the roundtable that evening.The bs from the Christian Right has already started and we certainly don’t need it from, what I thought was, our own.
I really think some apologies are in order.
Bonju Patten says:
Never listened to Chelsea Handler – but Chaz Bono is a joke. She’s not gay (anymore) and claims she never was and now she’s transgender (maybe she’s got a pennie/maybe not) but she’s no longer part of the gay community and frankly, in my opinion, bisexuals and transgender people are not a part of the gay community. Why? Bi-sexuals have sex with everyone – Transgenders are hard to explain even to gay people – So here’s where the weirdness happens – Chaz Bono’s lesbian girlfriend wasn’t ever lesbian but waiting for Chastity to have the operation so they could be a straight couple? What? And now that Chastity is Chaz they are able to marry. Gay and Lesbian people are attracted to the SAME SEX – not the opposite and not whatever Transgender people are attracted to. I don’t enjoy going to the loo with a man who is now a woman because frankly if you had a penis and now it’s been chopped – it just means you are now a Eunech but still a man. Anyway it’s confusing but the Gay community used to stand with Man Loves Boy group which are pedophiles, which I used to hate. I never marched with the parades who allowed them to thrive among the Gay community and share in our events. We as a group are fighting tooth and nail for marriage equality and now we are deserted by Chaz Bono who was once a gay advocate who was struggling with her own identity problems.
it’s all very confusing and frankly the Gay community is better off alone without the tag along ers of Trannies and Bi’s.