Since we've launched our new Poll Position series we've asked you to sound off on glitter bombing and closeted celebrities.
This week, in honor of the Oscars on Sunday, we're revisiting the controversy involving Brett Ratner's use of the word "fag" during a Q&A session for his film "Tower Heist" with not one but two polls.
As you may recall, after the director was asked whether he rehearses with his actors before shooting a scene, Ratner, who was set to produce this year's Oscars ceremony, replied, "Rehearsing is for fags."
The statement was quickly condemned by the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) via Twitter. Entertainment Weekly writer Mark Harris felt similarly, saying that Ratner should step down from his Oscar producing duties as a result: "If he had used an equivalent racial or religious slur, the discussion would go something like, 'You're fired.' Apology or not. The same rule applies here. You don't get a mulligan on homophobia. Not in 2011."
Though Ratner did apologize for his use of the word, he eventually resigned from producing the Oscar telecast and earlier this week it was revealed that he has teamed up with GLAAD to helm a new series featuring "a diverse group of Hollywood celebrities, athletes, musicians and politicians 'coming out of the closet' as supporters of equality."
However, not everyone was happy about Ratner's decision to resign from the Academy Awards and some say the punishment did not fit the crime.
For our first poll, tell us if you think Ratner's use of "fag" merited his backing out of producing the Oscars:
As some LGBT people are beginning to put their money with their mouths are -- like a hair dresser in New Mexico who will no longer do the Governor's hair because she does not support marriage equality -- we're wondering if you feel like this is a useful tactic, and what's more, if this kind of thinking would have had an effect on your decision to watch the Oscars had Ratner not resigned:
Have other thoughts about the lengths to which the LGBT community should hold people accountable for their language -- and how extreme the consequences should be? Sound off in the comments section below.
