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Roseanne Barr needs to let Marie Osmond’s family grieve before she opens her big, fat mouth
Once television’s biggest star, Roseanne Barr only gets attention these days when she says something outrageous. I’d like to ignore this one because it is so disrespectful but it’s out there now so I wanted to comment.
Roseanne, who has been very pro-gay over the years, really goes too far by popping off about the tragic suicide of Marie Osmond’s son Michael Blosil who leapt to his death from his apartment building in downtown Los Angeles last Friday.
There has been much speculation that Michael, part of a famous Morman family, was gay. I don’t know if he was. What we do know is that he was depressed enough to kill himself.
“The Osmonds still talk lovingly about their church, saying nothing about its extremely anti-gay Crusade.” Roseanne writes on her blog.
Then she addresses grieving mother Marie: “Please don’t talk about how your faith in your church has helped you get through this one! Please get some integrity and tell that church of yours that you will leave it and stop giving it ten percent of your money if they don’t stop trying to destroy your kids’ and all gay people’s civil rights and dreams and hopes.”
I am no fan of the Mormon Church which largely funded the campaign to pass Proposition 8 in California. But Roseanne’s timing is so unnecessarily cruel.
We do know that Marie has a lesbian daughter who she has been publicly supportive of and we do not know what was happening in her son’s life.
Plus there’s this: anyone who has ever lost someone they love to suicide – and I have – knows that the guilt is unrelenting as you struggle with what you could have done to save them. It takes a long time to process that guilt and it is impossible to know what is going on inside the mind of a severely depressed person determined to kill themselves.
So Roseanne, do us a favor and shut up.
Comments
(All comments are reviewed before being published, and I review submissions several times per day.)
JontheMoonspinner says:
Roseanne has a point in there–somewhere–yet she’s too crass to discuss the matter with any eloquence.
Lisa says:
I clicked on your site to read the article about Marie Osmond’s son. I want to thank you for writing with such compassion and integrity. One of the things that I believe is polarizing for the Gay/straight communities (I’m straight so it’s from that perspective) is the anger that often accompanies the editorials about the way that churches handle the subject or the anger with which straight people shout their views about homosexuality. I guess I tend to agree with MLK on how to effect positive change, and your blog is much more in line with his philosophy.
Roseanne has so much anger that she loses her audience and they don’t hear the tidbits of truth hidden in her words. Death levels the playing field for straight, gay, rich poor, black, and white, and anyone who isn’t compassionate for what Marie is going through does not have my respect. You, however, do. Thank you!
Jeff Atwood says:
It’s possible to criticize Roseanne’s timing, but it is impossible to critize her message about the harm from religions which practice exclusion and foster hate. It’s also hard for me to accept an observant Mormon’s family “support” for a gay child; practicing Mormonism is not supportive, it’s rejection and a slap in the face, and doubly so if you’re a gay and female.
Debra says:
As someone who knows first-hand the devastation of losing a loved one to suicide, I feel that Roseanne Barr’s apparent attempt at self-promotion at others’ expense is irresponsible and truly despicable. What a pathetic person who sadly gets the attention she craves by broadcasting her crassness, ignorance, and insensitivity.
Tammy says:
Thank you SO much for showing respect for Marie, a grieving mother! The world appreciates this!
Jack says:
I too was aghast at Roseanne’s comments. This time of sorrow was no time to diss Marie’s church, especially since we didn’t even know if her son was gay. Unfortunately though, a lot of people make mean, insensitive comments about others regardless of the situation. You only have to read the comments on various blogs/forums to see that. A lot of people seem to get up every day with the intention of seeing how mean they can be. If they were happy in their lives they wouldn’t need to do that.
Danielle Helms says:
How can Roseanne Barr or anyone else presume to know the intimate details Re: Interpersonal relationships within the Marie Osmond family, cause for Michael’s depression/or “excuse” of depression, sexual orientation, or any connection of Michael’s personal problems to the Mormon Church? My Gosh!! Callous, Heartless, Insensitive, Appalling, Sickening & Shocking behavior on the part of Roseanne & mean spirited people posting rude/outrageous comments!! There is overwhelming IGNORANCE in our society with regard to suicide & depression… Focus on Education of self to avoid regurgitation of stupidity please! Unfortunately, the Internet offers the opportunity for pathetic & cruel cowards to lash out with intent to harm others, while hiding behind a screen name! Let Marie’s son rest in peace & his devastated mother cope with her horror/grief without Evil, unimaginable attacks!! May God Bless You & Hold You In His Loving Arms Marie!
2201 East says:
She hasn’t changed much from the gutter snipe she’s been for a long time. If I want to find rubbish, I’ll go look in the alley, thank you. Heartless bitch to say such a thing at this time.
Tom McQ says:
Thanks, Greg, for pointing to the line of decency and telling Ms. Barr that she way crossed it.
SanDiegoInExile says:
I could not disagree more with Greg on this. I am not a huge Roseanne fan, but she is dead-on with this. The Mormon Church does horrible things to its members who identify as gay. Roseanne most likely knows this first-hand, having lived much of her pre-fame life in Salt Lake City. Hiding behind the code word “depression” doesn’t help anyone in the long run. It’s tragic when one feels the only viable choice is to end one’s life. And the survivor’s guilt is understandable. Perhaps this tragic event will lead the Osmonds to become supportive of outstanding programs such as The Trevor Project and not simply tithe away to the Mormon Hate.
Kristin says:
YOU STUPID [deleted]…MICHEAL HAS DEPRESSION, THAT WHY HE KILLED HIMSELF..HE WAS ILL FOR YEARS. HE WAS SUFFERING FROM DEPRESSION, FROM BEING ADOPTED, FROM HIS PARENTS DIVORCED AND GOING INTO RE HAB.
HE KILLED HIMSELF BECAUSE HE WAS SICK, YOU STUPID GODDAMN FOOL!!
GET YOUR FREAKING STORY STRAIGHT
MICHEAL’S FRIENDS AND FAMILY CONFIRMED IT…
AND YOUR ALL STUPID TO AGREE WITH ROSEANNE BARR..
virginia grandy says:
I seriously doubt that Marie Osmond is crying about negative comments from Roseanne Barr, no more than she is applauding positive feedback regarding such comments from any of you. Negative as well as, positive comments or attention will always exist for celebrities, because it comes with the territory of being in the spotlight. Simply because Roseanne was quick to comment negatively, doesn’t mean that she was inaccurate.