Kobe Bryant Fined $100K For Saying ‘Faggot.’ Why Am I Not Happy?

The latest manufactured drama from the world of basketball (the previous one was Grant Hill vs Jalen Rose) centers around one of the best players in the NBA, Kobe Bryant. During last night’s game against the San Antonio Spurs, TNT cameras caught him calling referee Bennie Adams a faggot after being hit with a technical foul.

Earlier today, gay rights organization Human Rights Campaign issued a press release calling for an apology. Bryant released a bland statement declaring that “the words expressed do NOT reflect my feelings towards the gay and lesbian communities and were NOT meant to offend anyone.”

Nonetheless, a few hours later, the NBA announced it had fined Bryant $100,000.

I believe that in America, the main way to get someone’s attention through their bank account, so you would think I’d approve of the league’s action.

Yet something about the way the entire incident was handled is giving me second thoughts.

If you watch professional sports on television, you know that players say unprintable and uncouth things all the time. In fact, the camera often lingers on athletes in hopes of catching such an outburst.

I understand Bryant is a high-profile figure, but I was surprised this was turned into a national story.

Secondly, the fact that HRC took the lead on this is unusual. Their area of expertise is in using the legislative process to advance gay rights, not in monitoring the media for homophobic statements (that would be GLAAD’s specialty). To me, taking time out to focus on Bryant when legislatures across the country, such as Wyoming, Illinois, and California are working on a wide range of homophobic laws is not a productive use of time.