Louis C.K. Defends Tracy Morgan On Twitter (TWEETS)

It took over a week for Tracy Morgan's homophobic stand-up set to gain media attention, and now a week after that comedians and colleagues are still reacting.

The most provocative response so far may have come this morning from comedian Louis C.K. via Twitter. Seemingly out of the blue, C.K. decided to state his opinion on the now-national news story about his fellow comic. As you can read in this slideshow below, C.K.'s stream of tweets cover many angles of the story, from gays' rights to live in confidence, to Morgan's right to be a ridiculous person, to how much intention one should place on a joke.

Morgan has since apologized for the remarks and is now planning to protest the "Don't Say Gay" bill with GLAAD to further show his support and regret. Do you agree with C.K.'s evaluation and defense that Morgan is a comedian? Or do you think Morgan is right to be making up for what were intentionally hurftul remarks? Tell us what you think in the comments.

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Louis C.K.

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@louisck
Louis C.K.

Tracey Morgan said something wrong, evil, cruel, ignorant and hilarious. He was on a comedy stage, not at a pulpit.

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Comments

[harpred]

03:05 PM on 06/17/2011

Humor can heal. It can also divide people. "Toxic Clowns" like Rush LImbaugh know this very well. If a comedian is playing the line of good taste, they have to take some lumps when they cross it. If Morgan is genuinely not homophobic he should have taken more care in choosing his material. A super sophisticated satire savvy audience member might hear a joke as a harmless bit of fun, shocking , forbidden humor. The same joke heard by a dunderhead fan with less of a grip on satire might take it as an affirmation of their own bigotry. Or even worse, they could take it as support for their own hateful words and actions. "I mean, we were all laughing at it, right?" Comedy and art can be used as weapons intentionally or inadvertently.

[JB1977]

01:16 PM on 06/17/2011

There are literally thousands of lawmakers at the local, state and federal level who seek to take away gay people's rights. That is real life. This is simply a comedy bit (albeit not even funny). Too much wasted energy on Tracy Morgan.

[rawresolve]

11:40 AM on 06/17/2011

I don't disagree with Louie except for the "hilarious" part. Tracy has the right to say what he wants just like the rest of us have the right to say it sounded cruel and very not funny.

[TBrennan]

11:35 AM on 06/17/2011

I couldn't possibly care less about any homophobic jokes he made. He should be criticized for not being funny. He comes across as stupid to me. One of SNL's very weakest alums.

[Luuke]

01:34 AM on 06/17/2011

owwwwwww....Don't upset the gays.........

[Yokel]

09:13 PM on 06/16/2011

I think most vitriolic commenters here only read the first tweet. When CK later says "If every word a person says has to be right and balanced and fair, I will jump off a tall thing onto a hard place." most everyone here agreed. Outrage is part of the give and take, but it should be informed and to make this a firing offense limits our open society...

[AnotherTry]

02:16 AM on 06/17/2011

We get it. You think homophobia is hilarious. Good for you.

[Nate35]

03:13 AM on 06/17/2011

I find your lack of reading comprehension disturbing.

[TBrennan]

11:38 AM on 06/17/2011

Chill dude, many people can find that gay jokes can be funny. Perhaps you are a little insecure?

[Nate35]

04:33 PM on 06/16/2011

Most humor comes at the cost of risking offense to someone. By all appearances (Nobody here has actually heard what was said.) Morgan deserves a rebuke, but that doesn't mean we have to crucify him. A stern "That's not funny, think before you open your fat yap about something that sensitive" should serve nicely. Blowing out of frame by implying that he was seriously suggesting whatever he said is out of the question.

I have some sympathy for Tracy because as a straight white male I've gotten in some awkward situations pretending to be an ignorant schmuck. My friends, who know I'm really a big pinko softy, get the joke (I'm making fun of myself and the attitude I'm pretending to represent.) but occasionally those with low sarcasm thresholds take me seriously, leading to interesting misunderstandings. Anyway, that's how I hope Tracy's joke was intended, as a self-aware mockery of actual bigotry.

[bambamboom777]

02:56 AM on 06/17/2011

This is actually the point I've been trying to make too. People frequently don't understand humor, especially satire. Critical thinking seems to be lacking at epidemic rates. Therefore, many can't distinguish nuance, intention, context, etc. But that comedy far more dangerous. Homophobes hearing this type of humor are going to find it funny because of what they think are the truths in it. For others, it might be funny because of its absurdity and its ironic-chic jab at "political correctness". While a closeted teenager who is struggling with identity and internalized homophobia just sees it as mocking gay people and an indicator of how society views them. Intention isn't always as important as perception. And yes, he shouldn't be crucified for it, but it does bring up a good discussion.

[tashekor]

12:16 PM on 06/17/2011

He was doing his act in Tennessee where they recently banned the word "gay" from the public schools. Some of his job includes considering the context and make-up of his location. If his intent was to be jabbing at the homophobic tendencies of his audience he could have easily made that clear. From what I've read of the incident, it sounds like he was more interested in fitting in with them than challenging them.

[xXJoeyBagodonutsXx]

02:28 PM on 06/16/2011

We're pretty selective of what we deem insensitiv­e and what we call comedy. I really don't think Louis should open his pie hole about the decency of anyones routine.

http://you­tu.be/kEdk­4UHhwA4

[James Page]

08:36 AM on 06/17/2011

You completely missed his point.

[gemini68]

11:19 AM on 06/17/2011

Yup.

[rcthomp]

01:51 PM on 06/16/2011

At the end of the day I think what it comes down to is where people who want to fight discrimination want to spend their energy/resources- a comedian - or people like Newt Gingrich who actually have the potential to affect national policy in a bad way.

Its all neat to get upset about a Comedian known for saying offensive/outrageous things, but its not particularly responsible.

[AnotherTry]

01:58 PM on 06/16/2011

we can do both and do. Homophobia needs to be fought, not excused.

[Erasmus Funderburke]

11:22 AM on 06/17/2011

That require intepreting what Morgan said as homophobia, which is a real stretch.

[bambamboom777]

03:05 AM on 06/17/2011

This is true, but when in it comes to social issues, pop culture has an enormous impact on the public's attitude. The battles in the cultural arena can be just as important, perhaps even more so than Washington politics. Voters viewpoints have to come from somewhere and that eventually influences voting patterns. Even when policy is enshrined in law, if it doesn't agree with the social paradigm it is often loosely enforced or overturned. I think both realms are intertwined and important.

[leftheaded]

01:00 PM on 06/16/2011

edgy comedy is always met with outrage.

[harpred]

03:12 PM on 06/17/2011

Agreed. But what is really "edgy" about jokes that have thousands of years hitting traditional targets like gays? If something incites outrage, that doesn't automatically put it in the category of being "edgy" or shockingly original, does it? Not disagreeing with your comment per se.

[Ivar Anderson]

12:22 PM on 06/16/2011

It was a new comedy bit. It failed; like most new material does. When Bernie Mac talked about beating children in their sleep and smacking them over the head with a hammer, there was absolutely no outrage over that.

It's part of his bit. It doesn't necessarily reflect his personal opinions.

[Skeptical Cicada]

01:08 PM on 06/16/2011

He's been spewing homophobia in his "comedy" for years. It IS who he is.

Please describe the last time you were gay-bashed.

[Independent Follower]

01:41 PM on 06/16/2011

If that's gay bashing, then every time a comedian makes a joke regarding race and ethnic backgrounds, by using this logic, should be considered racist. Morgan's whole act is offensive to some group at some point, I see no real difference in his bit about a gay son. It wasn't meant to be taken literally. I would think who he is onstage is just his persona not who he really is. I'd be more offended if it were a straight comedian with a clean act. He says the most outlandish things onstage to get a reaction, most of the time it's funny.

[Ivar Anderson]

01:51 PM on 06/16/2011

I'm just saying, comedy has never been politically correct. Nothing has ever been too taboo for it. He certainly isn't the first comedian to use this material. He's apologized and is taking steps to appease the outrage.

Censoring comedy is a slippery slope.

[bigkendallas]

12:07 PM on 06/16/2011

I think we all need to lighten up, comedians are given a little more leeway.

Sadly, we couldn't have a Richard Pryor in today's world.

[dbolex]

10:50 AM on 06/16/2011

Mainstream America needs to get their heads out of their a#$%^ and get a life! and this goes to everyone here even weighing in an opinion on this non-significant bit of comic relief!!!!

[clarkc86]

10:01 AM on 06/16/2011

The question that is posed for commentary is clearly biased, get it together Huffpo. Part of what is being discussed is whether you believe Morgan's comments were intentionally harmful.

[FrenchWomenDont]

09:44 AM on 06/16/2011

the blob is free to offend all he wants but he is also free to face the consequences of going after a group of people with whom he works with, if he creates a discriminatory work environment then he is free to be fired. Live by the sword, die by the sword.