Joy Behar may not be kicking footballs on an NFL field any time soon, but a comment
made on a recent episode of The View has seen the co-host penalized nonetheless.
Top of the agenda for the ABC News daytime show was Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl
Nassib's decision to publicly come out, making him the first active NFL player to do so.
Nassib made NFL history by coming out during an Instagram video on June 21st in honor of
Pride Month. Filmed at his home in Westchester, Pennsylvania, the 28-year-old said:
"I just want to take a quick moment to say that I'm gay. I've been meaning to do this
for a while now, but I finally feel comfortable enough to get it off my chest."
Describing himself as a "pretty private person," Nassib told fans he wasn't sharing the news
for attention, saying:
"I actually hope that one day, videos like this and the whole coming-out process are
just not necessary, but until then, I'm gonna do my best and do my part to cultivate a culture
that's accepting and compassionate."
But despite Nassib taking pains to explain the importance of "representation and visibility,"
Behar wondered aloud why his coming out was such a big deal, telling the other hosts:
"I know he's the first active NFL player ever to come as gay, but come on, it's 2021, is
this such a big deal?"
While her co-hosts lauded Nassib's bravery, Behar kept pushing her point — and it seems
like, in the eyes of many, she may have gone just a little too far. She began by suggesting
that Nassib didn't need to make a big announcement about his coming out. The other co-hosts argued
that it was more about being seen and accepted, with Meghan McCain calling his announcement
"fantastic," but Behar brushed off their comments by joking about her lack of interest in the
NFL.
"After they said 'penetration in the end zone,' they lost me."
The joke was met with little more than awkward and stilted laughter from her co-hosts with
Navarro even blocking her ears. McCain, meanwhile, looked visibly unimpressed with Behar's pun.
The Republican daughter of the late Senator John McCain has long been open about her pro-gay
marriage views, even tweeting in 2012 anyone of the contrary belief is "close-minded."
As the other View co-hosts continued on in their support of Nassib's coming out, Behar
began to backtrack, saying:
"I just long for the day when you can just be gay in the world and it doesn't become
a big deal. By the way, that inappropriate joke I made for daytime television, scratch
it. Make believe I never said it."
Despite Behar's retraction, many on social media have slammed the comedian for being
homophobic. Journalist Jon Nicosia tweeted:
"Of all the progress gay men have made since I came out. Our lives are still defined by
anal sex 'jokes.'"
While another said:
"Time for someone to resign. Gay jokes were NEVER funny. Get a clue. #notfunny #Pride2021."
Some people went so far as to say Behar was outright "homophobic," although, a handful
of apparently gay Twitter users defended Behar from what they perceived to be "cancel" culture,
arguing that her joke was, in fact, funny. One user tweeted:
"I would like to thank everyone for being outraged on my behalf as a gay man. That said,
lighten up. It was funny and I can handle it myself!"
Another wrote:
"im gay and this didn't offend me at all i thought it was corny but funny. people need
to stop getting so offended over things."
Stand-up comedian Brad Loekle explained that while Behar's joke was "hacky," the LGBTQ+
community is more concerned about other things. He tweeted:
"We're not scared of a mediocre joke from a long standing ally. We're worried about
our physical/ Housing/ Job/ Legal SAFETY."
Things at least seem to be going better for Nassib himself. Amidst an outpouring of support
on social media, the NFL player has also announced that he will be donating $100,000 to The Trevor
Project — "the world's largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization" for
LGBTQ+ youth. He said:
"I'm very excited to be a part of it, to help in any way I can. I'm really pumped to see
what the future holds."
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