Fool Of The Week: Warren G

Sometimes people make such an ass of themselves that they just have to be called out. To point out egregious moments of stupidity, The Next Write Thing is starting a new feature called Fool Of The Week.

Our inaugural winner is Warren G, the one hit wonder from the 90s who was more recently seen on VH1’s Celebrity Fit Club than the charts, who embarrassed himself while attempting to revive his dormant career.

In a new Vanity Fair article, Warren put his foot in his mouth by saying “I ain’t against gay people. I’m just against it being promoted to kids … I know it happens, but let’s keep it behind the scenes.”

While claiming to have gay relatives and acquaintances, he draws the line at public displays of same-sex affection. “I just mean that on some of these TV shows, they got dudes kissing. We can’t have kids growing up with that…. We don’t want all the kids doing that. ‘Cause that ain’t how we was originally put here to do.”

The hypocrisy, ignorance, and general niggativity behind these statements is enough to make you laugh if it were not so pervasive in society.

First of all, the idea of someone whose work glorifies drug dealing, misogyny, and violence suddenly being concerned for children is laughable. Back when Warren G was a relevant artist, people like C. Dolores Tucker and Calvin Butts expressed similar arguments about the negative impact of gangster rap on black kids. They were roundly dismissed as people looking for an easy scapegoat. Now Warren G wants to be the Calvin Butts of today, claiming the title of moral defender. It’s okay to broadcast songs about black men killing each other at all hours of the day, but images of black same-gender couples are a danger to kids? I guess that is why Joseph Beam said “black men loving black men is THE revolutionary act.”

There is more foolishness to the rapper’s remarks.  They imply that sexuality is contagious and dependent  on  observed behavior. Even if you ignore science that says sexuality is likely genetically determined, consider that most LGBT people grow up with no examples of gay behavior to model, meaning that even in the absence of other gays, people still end up gay.  I also thought his reference to “all the kids” was funny.   How many gay children has he seen lately?  He sounds like one of those people who interprets the presence of any openly gay people as a sign they are “taking over.”   Just like some whites look at the integration of their neighborhoods and schools and complain that “the blacks and Latinos are taking everything!”

Finally, the concept of “keep it behind the scenes” symbolizes the don’t ask don’t tell culture of denial the black community has with regard to gay people that results in the Down Low. For example, the church and gospel industry are filled with gays yet people turn a blind eye.   For years, the black community has failed to address social issues like sexuality, domestic violence, and mental health, operating under the assumption that if they don’t acknowledge something, then it doesn’t exist, even if it’s in their face. When the closet is held in near reverence, it is not surprising that black LGBTs seem to be invisible.