[Twosugars]

Originally Posted by Niamh.

I just don't get how anyone could just blindly excuse someone because they're famous and they admire their career. I was in fact faced with that dilemma myself recently and I went off this particular "hero" of mine instantly

It's not quite the same, but Richard Wagner, a famous composer, was a virulent antisemite. Yet many Jewish musicians, conductors and fans continue admiring his music. Stephen Fry, who is half-Jewish, said that he couldn't imagine life without Wagner's operas even though he knows Wagner's views on people like him.
I think if somebody is a genius people are more willing to separate things.
I'm not saying it's right, but it happens.