By Ross Forman
Ozzie Guillen, manager of the Chicago White Sox, has been the talk of the sports world this past week—and yet it has nothing to do with the on-field play of his defending World Series champion team.
Instead, it was Guillen's comments about Chicago Sun-Times sports columnist Jay Mariotti that has startled many, rippling through Lakeview all the way to the New York City office of Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig.
Guillen was upset that Mariotti is 'not accountable,' so, in a tirade to about 20 reporters, he called Marriotti ( who was not present at the time ) , 'a piece of s---' and a 'f------ fag.'
Guillen was immediately questioned about his 'fag' comment and he explained that in his native country, Venezuela, the word 'fag' has to do with courage and not sexual orientation. However, Guillen has been living in America for about 25 years, as a major-league player, coach and, now, manager. He was sworn in as a U.S. citizen this past winter.
Guillen apologized for the comment, but that wasn't good enough for Selig, who fined him an undisclosed amount of money and ordered Guillen to attend sensitivity training. ( No announcement was made about when or where Guillen will undergo his training. )
'On Tuesday night, Ozzie Guillen used language that is offensive and completely unacceptable,' Selig said in a statement. 'Baseball is a social institution with responsibility to set appropriate tone and example. Conduct or language that reflects otherwise will not be tolerated. The use of slurs embarrasses the individual, the club and the game.'
White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf spoke to WBBM-AM ( 780 ) about the Guillen situation, saying, 'There's no excuse for his choice of words. Although I understand in his country it might have a different meaning, he's been here a long time and he has to understand how people react.'
Guillen's comment was, naturally, the hot topic on sports-talk radio stations for days as well as ESPN and other national media outlets. Even local music station B-96 debated the topic during an evening segment, with Stylz & Roman.
'Children learn that to call a boy a 'fag' is the worst insult possible, no matter the language or country of origin. Derogatory terms are demeaning—even in jest or anger—whether directed against women, people of color or gay men, and calling one man a 'fag' demeans a whole class of people,' said Kevin Boyer, co-vice chair of Gay Games Chicago. 'Personally, I accept Ozzie Guillen's apology, but with the understanding that the word 'fag' needs to leave his vocabulary if he is a true friend to the gay community and a supporter of events like the Gay Games.'
But not everyone is so supportive of Guillen, particularly because this was his second anti-gay comment in less than a year. Last August at Yankee Stadium in New York City, again with a pack of reporters around, he spotted a longtime friend and said, 'Hey, everybody, this guy's a homosexual! He's a child molester!' After that incident, Guillen told the Chicago Tribune: 'I have no problem with [ homosexuals ] . I don't deal with that. To me, everybody's the same. We're human beings created by God. Everybody has their own opinion and their own right to do what they want to do. You have the right to feel the way you want to feel. Nobody can take that away from you.'
Jim Buzinski, the CEO of Outsports.com, was 'pissed' at the whole Guillen situation.
'I was surprised, less than a year later, he would come back [ and say ] something that he has to know is offensive, and then to hide behind the 'cultural argument,' well, that doesn't fly,' Buzinski said. 'If he used [ derogatory ] terms about other minority groups, be it Jews, Blacks, Asians, whatever, he'd never get away with it. Just imagine if he had had said something racial about a Black sportswriter.'
Buzinski was among many who said Guillen's comment deserved a suspension from Major League Baseball, not just a fine and sensitivity training. A suspension would have 'sent a message that baseball would not tolerate those types of comments,' Buzinski said.
Guillen's stereotyping comments continued even as his gay friends defended him—last week he told the Sun-Times that he has gay friends, goes to WNBA games ( is that a lesbian stereotype? ) , went to the Madonna concert ( is that a gay male stereotype? ) and plans to attend the Gay Games. Boyer was unaware that Guillen was truly going to attend the Games, other than what was reported in the press.