Who on earth hasn't heard of Evander Holyfield before?! He's a big name

lol, you're being ridiculous. Thank god not all of us are doormats.

Legal reasons, benefits and accommodations, and taxes.

Marriage is not owned nor invented by religious institutions and when it comes to equality, yes, we can always have what we want.

I think Evander handled the situation well, he wasn't hateful. He is genuinely ignorant on the subject.

I didn't get the impression that Evander hates gay people, or has any ill intentions towards homosexuals, i think he is genuinely ignorant on the subject, he's just repeating what he's heard in church and from his peers. I don't get a hate vibe from him at all.

He just doesn't know any better.

Offensive how?

I thought matts opinion was very balanced actually, when you look at it objectively that's how it is.
How is that an example of being a doormat?...

lol, gays are being hanged and set on fire this very minute. Gays were sent to concentration camps and gassed, were put in insane asylums, were castrated, were imprisoned, even in the 20th century, are still able to be fired based on their sexual orientation, they are not a protected group in the US, and the list goes on. According to you, antisemitism isn't a big deal either. You can hide being Jew. You are an insanely ignorant, limited individual.

Saying that homosexuals are handicapped and should be fixed isn't hate, IS being a doormat if you're a gay person. Gays are put in homosexual deprogramming centers where they're tortured to death in order to get "fixed."

There's no doubt that homophobia is the most heinous and insidious hatred and form of discrimination left in the western world.

But what Evander said wasn't really hateful, it was just ignorant. To be fair, i don't even really know what he said, he was barely forming sentences. The guys is 60 years old and clearly has brain damage, i think it's fair to give him a pass. he didn't come across as hateful.

He wasn't suggesting they be put into deprogramming centres though, I think some are reading too much into what he did say.
What he said wasn't inciteful, just a culmination of influences resulting in an opinion that is now considered unenlightened.
Ignorance is not a crime.

Agreed. He wasn't nasty or malicious. He's a very religious man, that is why he does not approve of homosexuality.

He wasn't being nasty, he was saying something that his belief teaches him, ergo the Bibles thoughts on gay relationship. The only issue here is the OTT reaction we are getting from a section of the community regarding how gays feel and sadly these few seem to be speaking for a nation and its sad to hear they are so effected by one mans ignorance.

Ive said it before and will say it again. These OTT reactions that are coming forward, precipitate gay persecution worse than bigots and ignorant people doing the gay bashing. For christs sake, pipe down and look at ways to solve the problem, not ways to hang everyone that blips or says something off the cuff that disagrees with your views. You are beginning to sound like PC in overdrive and its doing your own cause no good.

oh dear...how very dare he have an opinion that doesnt quite suit others....naught boy ! get back into that corner and dont dare think or speak again !!

I like that he's not afraid to have an opinion. :)

me too! its up to him what he thinks and likes and dislikes.....everyone has choices... you dont have to go along with everyone and agree with them just because its PC.....
and before anyone goes off on one.....i am not anti gay, black, green, alien, or anything else you can think of......i just think that you are entitled to your own opinions and not be afraid to speak em out...

Well I hope you all have the same 'freedom of speech' 'entitled to his opinion' stance if Jim makes a racist joke in there... :thumbs:

He'll get a warning if he does that, just like Dappy and Evander.

personally couldnt care too tosses what he says...or any of the others....there will always be someone out there waiting to twist the knife and the words....

I meant more people's reactions on here...

Exactly!Too many people these days are shot down when they try and discuss their opinions,Nothing gets solved like that,It just creates an under current of misunderstanding and hate rather than airing the issues openly and honestly.

We are not being OTT he called me as a gay person 'Wrong, handicapped and suggested us gays go to the hospital to get fixed.

I was offended, would I call Ofcom? NO WAY because people are allowed to have their opinion and at 60 years old he should know by now that saying those things is going to cause offence.

IMO Channel 5 should have kept that conversation going and maybe he would have changed his views slightly.

Don't tell the people who were offended to pipe down and solve the problem its not our job to educate the bigots out there also don't tell us how to feel about the situation because you my friend have not personally been at the end of homophobic comments.

Im not PC I just cant stand ignorant people.

I agree.

It's ridiculous that some people expect nobody to be offended, it's even worse when someone says "I'm gay and I'm not offended so it's not offensive". Hey, good for you, but some people are offended and are entitled to feel that way.

I'm not one of those who gets offended by every little comment, honestly they piss me off too. I'm not even big into gay culture, I don't surround myself with it, etc, it's not a defining aspect of my personality. But, if someone is going to compare homosexuality to a handicap or an illness, OF COURSE it's going to be hurtful to some. What's so hard to understand about that? On top of that, it's factually incorrect. You don't treat it, you don't cure it. He even pulled his face when Luisa said being gay is normal and said "That ain't normal!". How is any of this supposed to be totally non-hurtful?

If someone told him that him being black is akin to an illness and he should sort it out, there would be hell to pay among the viewers. How is this so different?

I don't think he should be vilified or anything, but people are perfectly entitled to stand up and say "I find what he said offensive".

:thumbs: