GLAAD -- the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation -- is calling on Pro Football Weekly TV co-host Dan Hampton to apologize for saying, “The Cowboys think they are Clint Eastwood -- they're more of the Brokeback variety if you know what I'm talking about.”
According to GLAAD, Hampton has already apologized this week for saying “that when the Vikings meet the Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints for a rematch of last year's NFC Championship game (which the Vikings lost in overtime) they need to ”go down there and hit that town like Katrina.'"
Hampton wasn't actually saying the Cowboys players are gay, but by making this comment, Hampton telegraphed to his audience that gay men are not good enough, just as he doesn't believe the Dallas Cowboys are good enough. Hampton was a tremendous player for the Chicago Bears throughout the 1980s, he's a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he's a television personality, and whether he likes it or not, he's a role model. Every day, millions of kids across this country are harassed, bullied and beaten because of attitudes like this. Hampton should not be using his platform to encourage homophobia.
Dan Hampton needs to apologize for this offensive and defamatory statement, just as he needed to apologize for his Katrina comment. We will be calling Pro Football Weekly to voice our concerns.
You can contact the show with your thoughts on Hampton's comments by clicking here.
