Did North Carolina Governor Use Gay Slur In Front Of Clinton?

Pansy? Standing next to Clinton, her top surrogate in North Carolina actually used the word "pansy" this morning.

After touring a bio-manufacturing training center, Gov. Easley, First Lady of North Carolina Mary Easley and Clinton held a ceremony at NC State University. The Governor formally expressed his support saying that there was "nothing I love more than a strong powerful woman." Easley concluded his remarks saying Clinton -- "makes Rocky Balboa look like a pansy".

In case anyone has been living under a rock, pansy is slang for "fag."

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[JackNasty]

Being Hillary means never having to say you're sorry.

[klandish]

And the head of a union today supported Hillary by saying we needed someone with "testicular fortitude". What's with all this gender bending talk?

[JXB]

Let's see,

Ferraro, race (Obama is where he is in campaign because of his race)
Murtha, age (McCain is too old to be president)
Gibson, gender (qualified female candidates like Hillary have "testicular fortitude")
Easley, sexual orientation (Hillary makes muscular male Hollywood heroes look like "pansies" by comparison).

Just a few more bases left for Clinton supporters to cover.

[DesertLight]

Ah dunno, when I hear the word "pansy," I have visions of John Edwards dancing in my head.

[robynuva]

A man of his generation knows just what "pansy" means. And contrary to all evidence, equates weak with homosexual. Ever heard of Mark Bingham, among many, many others?

Where is his apology? Oh, I forgot, it is OK to not denounce bigotry as long as it is against gays and lesbians. That explains HRC on the 700 Club.

[pagopago]

she doesn't do much in the way of apologies, not even when she lies, it has to be FORCED from her.

[NCMan]

I would much rather have Gov Easly use the term "pansy" to describe me than to have Obama supporter ( and honored member of Obama's big tent) the Rev Donnie McClurkin, refer to me as a gay man being a disease ridden child molester who needs to be fixed by having the gay prayed away. But, that's just me i guess. Maybe you don't mind Obama's acceptance of religious based anti-gay bigotry.

[DesertLight]

McClurkin sings a mean hymn though.

[skibum49]

Look I am about as much of an OBAMA fan as there is but folks really need to lighten up on this one. Whatever the Governor was trying to say he certainly didnt say it very well and quite frankly I suspect the feminist crowd should probably be more upset than the gays about his "strong woman" reference to Hillary. That being said she really isn't responsible for the idiots they elect in NC.

[totalliberal]

Pansy is no more homophobic than calling someone a wuss. It suggests less than masculine behavior. Such as:

-Not farting enough.

-Not drinking and acting like a pig enough.

-Worrying if your wife has had an orgasm.

- Cleaning old food out of the fridge.

- Drinking juice or milk out of a glass.

- Leaving the seat up.

[Dave01]

Well I guess you nailed it right on the head.

Hillary must fart enough

Hillary must drink and act like a pig enough.

Hillary worries about her wife having an orgasm

Hillary doesn't care how much rotten food there is in the fridge.

Hillary must drink juice or milk out of a glass.

We ALL know she leaves the toilet seat up when she's done peeing.

I guess she really is a MAN!

[RThM]

This is absurd and explains why "pansies" are still getting beat up in school yards.

[susane07]

You don't know what you're talking about. Pansy is a perjorative term for a gay person. HRC should disown this governor's support as she has asked Obama to do with his pastor. Fair is fair.

[arsphidius]

Last I heard, a pansy was a flower.

[klandish]

Yep, Hilary's no flower. Or maybe the night blooming poisonous one.

[Vern58]

This man needs to learn how to choose his words a bit more carefully. Though i am not among those that see a slur under each rock and around every corner, he shows that dangerous tendancy toward careless speech many Clinton surrogates use, evermore frequently.
Thanks Hill. Some of us allready remember how you and Bubba threw us under a Greyhound Bus for all of our devoted support. As a Gay man, out allmost 30 years , i allways marvel at our own propensity to suffer willingly. Not this "pansy"
Obama 08!

[rwe]

So homophobia , along with racism, sexism and antisemitism IS truly the domain of Prograssives.... or are the elitists going to allow a word to be hijacked, similar to say the word gay., when describing homosexuals or now climate change for global warming, or black liberation theology for racism

[TooLooze]

What's a "prograssive"?

[midknightryder13]

Actually, it might be better to look at it for the Governor's perspective. "Pansy" WAS an anti-gay slur back in the 1940's and 50's. And it was widely known that was the case. AND he is of the correct age to remember that. Now, whether or not he meant it that way is debatable, but to say he was UNAWARE of its history is disingenious. Any man from that period knows it. While I'm not willing to go looking for conspiracies against Senator Clinton under every rock, it's entirely possible that he chose that word precisely because he knows most people born after 1960 wouldn't know of its 'other' meaning, while at the same time transmitting the same message to his peers. (Many of whom are superdelegates.)
Sometimes I do think we as gay men ARE too sensitive, but that doesn't mean he didn't mean that as a slur.

[likeicare]

I find it ironic that Hillary's most rabid support comes from the gay & lesbian communities (apparently), yet she & Bill seem not only embarrassed by their support, but also distainful of it.

And this, despite the fact that Hillary's own sexual orientation has always been the topic of much speculation itself. Curious.

It just proves, once again, the Clintons will use anybody and anything, say and/or do whatever is necessary to gain power.

Four more years of this bullshit? How sad for our country.

[newshawk14]

I caught the endorsement on cable news, and all I can say is the NC governor makes Arnold
Schwarzenegger look brilliant in comparison. I also thought his comment about pansies was
was both stupid and gratuitous.

[StillAmused]

"Pansy" (being, in fact, a flower) is common vernacular for "weakling" or "wimp", the contrast Easley was obviously making with the "Rocky" reference.

... unless you're a long-suffering, career victim or desperate Clinton basher, furiously sifting beach sand for fresh ammo.

Report it to the PC Police. They'll issue a summons... if it hasn't already been upgraded to 'acceptable', along with the now-commonplace "scumbag".

[prospace]

My initial reaction to this story was: Another code word I never knew about.

But things got interesting when I talked to my husband about the story. He said that in his experience, guys use "pansy" when "pussy" would be considered inappropriate.

Imagine if the governor had said, standing next to Hillary Clinton, that she makes Rocky look like a pussy.

I think Hillary still wouldn't have called him on it. For one thing, they weren't just blogging at the time. For another she was probably just thinking about what she was going to say next, not even paying attention to his introductory remarks.

I just came home tonight from a banquet honoring people for their achievements, and I can tell you that no one there was paying any attention during the rambling introductory remarks that preceded their own speeches.

[Gasparilla]

It usually means wuss. But it's Hillary, so everyone pile on.

[Vern58]

Sorry, but the term "Pansy" was and always will be code for an effeminate male homosexual.
She cannot hide behind the semantics- not this time.

[NCMan]

actually pansy means effeminate male no matter if they are gay or straight.

just as many straight boys grew up being called pansies just because they didn't play sports or act butch enough.

[JackNasty]

Yes, and the word bitch usually means a female dog and the phrase jungle bunny usually means a a tropical rabbit . . . on Planet Denial!

[jalapeno]

Accentuating a STRONG MALE IMAGE by using a derrogatory term for the opposite contributes directly to RAPE, SPOUSAL ABUSE, AND CHILD ABUSE.


Men are already masculine enough!!

[missjabez]

Hillary Clinton is laughing like a hyena in that picture. Keep on laughing, Hillary, but for how long? The sun may not always be shining so brightly in Hillaryland.

[geobushono]

...........and he is EXACTLY why we need a Party wide purge.................this is passing for a Democrat folks.............they're repugs with repug values...and OUR Party has fawned and cajoled and bent over for 40 fucking years to get a few votes from bigots who vote against their best interests just so gays can't marry ......WE on the other hand aren't suppose to notice. the stench.

[Politiking]

That is not what he meant and you know it. Stop gaying it up. Last time I checked, pansy is better than sissy.

[StephenDedalus82]

I'm gay and I am not offended by the word "pansy," because, while it can be used as a slur, it also simply means "weakling" to many people who don't choose their words as carefully. If he'd said "faggot," we'd have a problem.

[JMDavis]

Gay here too, not the least bit offended by the word "pansy". This story is about a whole lot of nothing. Why create an issue where there isn't one. I'm guessing that most of the folks up in arms about this, don't really give a hoot about the gay community.

[BEHM777]

You are gay and not offended by the term, which is your right. I do not claim to know how many other gay men would share your POV, but I applaud your maturity. Still, it is something the sitting governor of a state should not have said. The connotation was obvious, and somewhat offensive to me and I am heterosexual. He could have said "98 pound weakling" and there would have been no issue with that--assuming weakling is what he was trying to convey in contrast to HRC's perceived toughness.

[airduds]

"...He could have said "98 pound weakling" and there would have been no issue with that..."

But... What if I only weigh 98 lbs and I'm not very strong? I'm joking, but there are thousands of gay and straight men that fit this description.

Do they have the right to be offended?

[Vern58]

Yes- it is like it as not- pejorative I know lots of Gay Men, especially among our Elders who will be offended. It took me a lot longer than i expected to embrace the term "queer" (the term most used when i was a young Gay man)but i have come to embrace it as well. While i am not overly offended by the term it smacks of the ugly nature of HRCs support troops..

[lefthandedrn]

Living in North Carolina, Easley has no clout, whatsoever here. He is a joke. We can't wait until he leaves office. His own Lt. Governor has endorsed Obama. The only value he has for Clinton is his superdelegate vote (and I wouldn't bet on that since he hasn't voted at the convention in decades and can't vote by proxy)!

Most of the state workers hate him, he has pushed through free community college education for illegal immigrants' children "to give them a fair chance" on our tax money. Wondered why he waited so late to endorse her? Where was he when she was traveling around North Carolina challenging Obama to a debate on the back of a flat bed truck?

He has so distanced himself and is never seen outside of the capitol. You can have him Hillary and take him back to New York when you go!

[Politiking]

You must be an NC state worker. :)

[nellie]

So now the surrogates are out there winking at the homophobes. This is so exhausting.

[StephenDedalus82]

It must be exhausting thinking everything that ever happens is a conspiracy by Hillary Clinton.

[wndrwrthg]

For these people, there is no thinking involved.