It’s not breaking news but it just crossed the newsdesk at The SSC. It seems that a pair of strong-self esteemed lesbians just couldn’t handle some jokes hurled their way that they decided to file a human rights complaint with Canadian bureaucrats.
And anyone who has been paying attention knows that the only thing with a poorer sense of humor than a bunch of government bureaucrats is a terminally outraged Mid-Eastern ‘Activist’ just a few seconds before he or she ‘activates’ that detonator and raises awareness to kingdom come!
Comic faces human rights hearing in B.C. after lesbian jokes
David Wylie, Canwest News Service
A Canadian stand-up comedian will face a human rights tribunal hearing after a woman complained she and her friends faced a “tirade of homophobic and sexist comments” while attending one of his shows.
In a decision released this week, the B.C. Human Rights Tribunal ruled there is enough evidence to hear the case of Vancouver woman Lorna Pardy against Toronto comedian Guy Earle. Zesty’s Restaurant in Vancouver, where the May 22, 2007, show took place, was also named in the complaint. The restaurant has since closed.
Pardy could not be reached Wednesday for comment. However, the tribunal’s decision says she alleges she was discriminated against over her sex and sexual orientation when Earle made public comments “intended to humiliate her.” The ruling says Earle and Pardy “have very different versions of who was to blame for the incidents, how it came about and how it escalated.” There is also a dispute over what role alcohol played in the incident.
“Mr. Earle does, however, admit that he used comments which he now regrets,” says the tribunal. “Those admitted comments may go to establish discrimination.”
Reached Wednesday, Earle said he was the show’s MC when Pardy and two of her friends walked in, sat in the booth closest to the stage and began heckling him and other comics.
“Two of them started making out, flipping me the bird and saying I hated lesbians,” he said.
Earle was reluctant to repeat the remarks that led to the human rights complaint.
“Everybody wants to know what I said, and I invite people to come see me on stage because you can’t take it out of context. And that’s exactly what’s happened here.
“The reader or the listener or whatever has no feeling for the environment of the comedy show that is triple-X, edgiest-show-in-town, controversial and offensive, so when you walk in there you’re making an agreement to be a party to this controversial show.”
Earle said Pardy misconstrued some of his remarks and took others out of context.
“You just change one little verb and you take it out of context and all of a sudden it’s time for me to drink a glass of hemlock,” he said. “They were drunk, they were being jerks and I was very rude and visceral to them because, like I said, if you have a heckler, what you want to do is put them in their place by offending them, so I tried to hit them where it hurts and the only thing I had to key on was the fact that they were lesbians.
“I don’t care if they’re lesbians, heterosexuals, homosexuals or giraffes.”
Earle said the complaint is an attack on comedians’ right to perform.
“I would never have expected it would get escalated to a philosophical battle.”
He added it’s been more than 40 years since controversial U.S. comic Lenny Bruce was jailed for obscenity over his comic material – “and we’re still fighting the same battle. I know it’s a fight I can never win. But I’ve got to keep fighting.”
Earle is holding a benefit concert on July 19 in Toronto to raise money for his legal fees.
