dobi - Rob Dobi avatar

i’m not homophobic or anything...

posted 4 months ago by dobi

but hot topic having this prominently displayed in the store window (along w/ about 5 other similar shirts) is kinda wack.

62 Comments

  1. Joe - Joe avatar

    Joe said 4 months ago

    I don’t think explicitly pro-glbtetc. shirts are bad, even in mainstream stores. What I take issue with is the ideology implicit in this shirt that sexuality is something that you can be convinced of, i.e. that it is completely a conscious decision.

  2. quakerninja - Newman avatar

    quakerninja said 4 months ago

    So what do I get if I sign up?

  3. Time Without the E - Tim Hyde avatar

    Time Without the E said 4 months ago

    quakerninja said: So what do I get if I sign up?

    Not being able to sit right for a week

  4. LitoQ - Q avatar

    LitoQ said 4 months ago

    Q: What do you call a gay dinosaur

    A: Tyrannosoreass rex

    buh-rum chssssshhhhh

  5. thebutcher - thebutcher avatar

    thebutcher said 4 months ago

    LitoQ said: Q: What do you call a gay dinosaur A: Tyrannosoreass rex buh-rum chssssshhhhh

    Q: What do you call a gay guy in a wheelchair?

    A: Roll-aids.

    bum bum, bum!

  6. a killer wombat - bailey avatar

    a killer wombat said 4 months ago

    Q: what do you call a lesbian dinosaur
    a: A lickalotapuss

  7. gengen - mustache&friends avatar

    gengen said 4 months ago

    Joe said: I don’t think explicitly pro-glbtetc. shirts are bad, even in mainstream stores. What I take issue is the ideology implicit in this shirt that sexuality is something that you can be convinced of, i.e. that it is completely a conscious decision.

    thank you. imo it is not something you can be convinced of and this shirt makes it seem that way.

  8. nate gonz - nate gonz avatar

    nate gonz said 4 months ago

    Q: What’d the gay guy call his diarrhea?
    A: Juicy Fruit

  9. mitchbones - Mitchell avatar

    mitchbones said 4 months ago

    I finally figured out why the dinosaurs went extinct. They apparently were all gay.

  10. hideouscarwreck - Leila avatar

    hideouscarwreck said 4 months ago

    Joe said: I don’t think explicitly pro-glbtetc. shirts are bad, even in mainstream stores. What I take issue with is the ideology implicit in this shirt that sexuality is something that you can be convinced of, i.e. that it is completely a conscious decision.

    +10 exactly

  11. sittingduck - Josh Stomberg avatar

    sittingduck said 4 months ago

    what’s the worst pick-up line at a gay bar?

    "I’ll buy you a drink if you’ll push in my stool."

  12. Joe - Joe avatar

    Joe said 4 months ago

    Since some people are agreeing with me, I should specify that I DO think gender, sexuality, and desire are socioculturally variable and constructed, and therefore neither universal nor given.

  13. thebutcher - thebutcher avatar

    thebutcher said 4 months ago

    How do you get 4 gay dudes to sit at a bar with one stool?

    Turn the stool upside down.

  14. tylerd1143 - Tyler Evans avatar

    tylerd1143 said 4 months ago

    i find it funny that they pulled the plug so fast on those To write love on her arms shirts but openly sell these shirts. it seems there would be just as much of an issue with these shirts as the others had.

  15. jfinley - Jeff Finley avatar

    jfinley said 4 months ago

    Joe said: I don’t think explicitly pro-glbtetc. shirts are bad, even in mainstream stores. What I take issue with is the ideology implicit in this shirt that sexuality is something that you can be convinced of, i.e. that it is completely a conscious decision.

    Obviously, being gay is just the cool thing to do I guess! Hot Topic likes to profit off what kids are into these days, so apparently with shows like that Tila Tequila one, being gay is just part of being a teenager.

    Like, try both guys and girls and see which one you like better. It’s the new smoking.

  16. captiveclothing - Captive Clothing avatar

    captiveclothing said 4 months ago

    jfinley said:
    Joe said: I don’t think explicitly pro-glbtetc. shirts are bad, even in mainstream stores. What I take issue with is the ideology implicit in this shirt that sexuality is something that you can be convinced of, i.e. that it is completely a conscious decision.

    Obviously, being gay is just the cool thing to do I guess! Hot Topic likes to profit off what kids are into these days, so apparently with shows like that Tila Tequila one, being gay is just part of being a teenager.

    Like, try both guys and girls and see which one you like better. It’s the new smoking.

    HAHA. Thats kinda true, and ridiculous.

  17. RikkiB - RikkiB avatar

    RikkiB said 4 months ago

    Haha, I’m not homophobic or anything... but don’t let the kids know gayness exists or they might decide to become one.

    What’s the harm of putting this tee in a window?
    Maybe you should avoid San Fran ;)

  18. Randomentity - Courtney Varner avatar

    Randomentity said 4 months ago

    jfinley said:
    Joe said: I don’t think explicitly pro-glbtetc. shirts are bad, even in mainstream stores. What I take issue with is the ideology implicit in this shirt that sexuality is something that you can be convinced of, i.e. that it is completely a conscious decision.

    Obviously, being gay is just the cool thing to do I guess! Hot Topic likes to profit off what kids are into these days, so apparently with shows like that Tila Tequila one, being gay is just part of being a teenager.

    Like, try both guys and girls and see which one you like better. It’s the new smoking.

    lmao, yeah, good point.
    tila tequila has a show?
    i’m so not in the mainstream loop.

    as far as the shirt being in HT goes, they’re just profiting off of a youth subculture. every scene girl is at least bi. and the boys wear girl pants. clearly there’s something up!
    I disagree with the shirt, because i’m someone who thinks that it’s not a conscious decision for truly homosexual people. some people choose, others don’t.

  19. skull with hair - skull with hair avatar

    skull with hair said 4 months ago

    LitoQ said: Q: What do you call a gay dinosaur A: Tyrannosoreass rex buh-rum chssssshhhhh

    you fucked it up. the punch line is Megasaurus (mega sore ass)

  20. LitoQ - Q avatar

    LitoQ said 4 months ago

    lol I knew it was one of the sore-asses

  21. sht! - troy hughes avatar

    sht! said 4 months ago

    what kind of food does a gay horse eat?!

    hayyyy!!!

  22. andrE w. - AndrEw avatar

    andrE w. said 4 months ago

    shit im heterophobic
    haha, when i read the title of the bulliten some eminem lyrics flashed in my head. lameee

  23. Gordocreative - Gordocreative avatar

    Gordocreative said 4 months ago

    thomcat said:
    LitoQ said: Q: What do you call a gay dinosaur A: Tyrannosoreass rex buh-rum chssssshhhhh

    Q: What do you call a gay guy in a wheelchair?

    A: Roll-aids.

    bum bum, bum!

    I hope you die a horrible death. seriously.

  24. Gordocreative - Gordocreative avatar

    Gordocreative said 4 months ago

    dobi the shirt is wack.

  25. andrE w. - AndrEw avatar

    andrE w. said 4 months ago

    Gordocreative said:
    thomcat said:
    LitoQ said: Q: What do you call a gay dinosaur A: Tyrannosoreass rex buh-rum chssssshhhhh

    Q: What do you call a gay guy in a wheelchair?

    A: Roll-aids.

    bum bum, bum!

    I hope you die a horrible death. seriously.

    fuckk, i think that was serious.

  26. a_mar_illo - Sven Palmowski avatar

    a_mar_illo said 4 months ago

    RikkiB said: Haha, I’m not homophobic or anything... but don’t let the kids know gayness exists or they might decide to become one. What’s the harm of putting this tee in a window? Maybe you should avoid San Fran ;)

    I absolutely agree, rikkib.

    I hate funny slogan tees, but if would like them, I would consider this one among the funnier ones...

  27. Ameeee - Amy Brown avatar

    Ameeee said 4 months ago

    RikkiB said: Haha, I’m not homophobic or anything... but don’t let the kids know gayness exists or they might decide to become one. What’s the harm of putting this tee in a window? Maybe you should avoid San Fran ;)

    I’m with you RikkiB, how many hetero whore tees are there for girls? If you’re gay you’re gay, a t-shirt isn’t going to persuade you to give it a go.

  28. godmachine - Az' avatar

    godmachine said 4 months ago

    Can anyone tell me what the shirt is implying?

  29. heavyprints - Nick avatar

    heavyprints said 4 months ago

    Godmachine said: Can anyone tell me what the shirt is implying?

    That the wearer is
    A) Gay
    and
    B) Recruiting new members of the Gay Community

    PS - You should get on IM so I can talk to you. :)

  30. Ameeee - Amy Brown avatar

    Ameeee said 4 months ago

    Recruiting for partners..in the "gay" colours..

  31. andrE w. - AndrEw avatar

    andrE w. said 4 months ago

    that the wearer of this tee shirt is going to recruit people into a lifestyle choice less straight than the one lead by me or you, hence the rainbow. although i dont understand why rainbows are gay, rainbows are awesome, id wear rainbow stuff if it wasnt so widely acknowledged as a gay pride thing.

  32. Ameeee - Amy Brown avatar

    Ameeee said 4 months ago

    andrE w. said: that the wearer of this tee shirt is going to recruit people into a lifestyle choice less straight than the one lead by me or you, hence the rainbow. although i dont understand why rainbows are gay, rainbows are awesome, id wear rainbow stuff if it wasnt so widely acknowledged as a gay pride thing.

    You described that so much better than me. Once I get my dinner my brain will be working.

    Here’s their other "pride" stuff..
    http://www.hottopic.com/hottopic/store/nodePage.jsp?FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302034839

  33. godmachine - Az' avatar

    godmachine said 4 months ago

    heavyprints said:
    Godmachine said: Can anyone tell me what the shirt is implying?

    That the wearer is
    A) Gay
    and
    B) Recruiting new members of the Gay Community

    PS - You should get on IM so I can talk to you. :)

    did you win bro?

  34. jimiyo - Jimi Benedict avatar

    jimiyo said 4 months ago

    i think gay people are smart... well, bisexual to be specific.
    its twice the ass you can go for.
    hard enough trying to get some as a hetero.

    not that its my gig. jus sayin...

    speaking of rainbows, anyone ever play Peggle. Its got rainbows in it. awesome rainbows. and a unicorn. its rad.

  35. godmachine - Az' avatar

    godmachine said 4 months ago

    do gay people 'recruit'? I’m thinking this tee is homophobic. Its a pretty old fashioned idea that homosexuals are sexual preditors that actively seek out people to 'convert', isnt it. Its the retoric of some religions conservative. You may as well have a tee in a rainbow font thats says 'I have aids'.

    or is it playing up to that...is it ironic etc...

    do i need to shut the hell up...?

  36. Ameeee - Amy Brown avatar

    Ameeee said 4 months ago

    Godmachine said: do gay people 'recruit'? I’m thinking this tee is homophobic. Its a pretty old fashioned idea that homosexuals are sexual preditors that actively seek out people to 'convert', isnt it. Its the retoric of some religions conservative. You may as well have a tee in a rainbow font thats says 'I have aids'. or is it playing up to that...is it ironic etc... do i need to shut the hell up...?

    Nah don’t shut up, there’s a few of us on the same wavelength!

    jimiyo said: i think gay people are smart... well, bisexual to be specific. its twice the ass you can go for. hard enough trying to get some as a hetero. not that its my gig. jus sayin... speaking of rainbows, anyone ever play Peggle. Its got rainbows in it. awesome rainbows. and a unicorn. its rad.

    I’ve been thinking about downloading Peggle for my iPod..although I still have finished Sonic..

  37. Joe - Joe avatar

    Joe said 4 months ago

    Godmachine said: do gay people 'recruit'? I’m thinking this tee is homophobic. Its a pretty old fashioned idea that homosexuals are sexual preditors that actively seek out people to 'convert', isnt it. Its the retoric of some religions conservative. You may as well have a tee in a rainbow font thats says 'I have aids'. or is it playing up to that...is it ironic etc... do i need to shut the hell up...?

    I think you’re totally right about the tee propagating some pretty negative stereotypes. Don’t shut up! It’s impossible to figure out exactly what it 'means' out of context, however. It would be most meaningful on an actual person, otherwise we’re just assuming some sort of wearer.

    I could imagine this being worn mostly by gay people in a 'genuo-ironic' manner. That is, they genuinely mean the surface meaning ('I am gay') but ironically align themselves with an anti-gay rhetoric of 'sexuality is a choice', 'I’m going to taint your children', etc.

    And holy crap, this other HT 'pride' (if you can call it that, which you can’t, because the following shirt is awful) tee is terrible:

    'Hi, I’m gay and am therefore promiscuous! I have a new sexual partner weekly!'
    God damn it, this really pisses me off. I am sending Hot Topic an email. If they don’t respond, they get a letter. If you feel strongly, I encourage you to do the same: http://community.hottopic.com/customerservice/talktous.asp

    This is the text of the email/letter:

    To whom it may concern:

    I am writing to you about your line of ‘Pride’ t-shirts. Although I am strongly pro-gay rights, I feel that I must express my disappointment, frustration, and even anger at some of the ‘Pride’ t-shirts in the Hot Topic store. Hot Topic is currently selling two t-shirts that propagate anti-gay ideologies and misinformation: ‘Recruiter’ and ‘I Recycle Boys’. It will be easiest to examine each t-shirt individually, starting with ‘Recruiter’. I hope that my arguments about the meanings of these t-shirts is convincing enough to effect the immediate removal of these shirts from the Hot Topic website and Hot Topic retail stores, as well as to foster more thoughtful consideration over the potential impact of gay ‘Pride’ products on the part of Hot Topic.

    Obviously, the surface meaning of all products in Hot Topic’s ‘Pride’ category is that the wearer is gay. However, the text of ‘Recruiter’ has some seriously negative implications: 1) that sexuality is a choice, which is part of the standard anti-gay rhetoric, and 2) that gay people are actively attempting to convince (or from an anti-gay perspective, ‘corrupt’) others, thus reproducing the perception that gay people are a ‘threat’ to the pseudo-moralistic norms of anti-gay ‘activists’.

    The second shirt, ‘I Recycle Boys’, is even worse. Unlike the previous shirt, ‘I Recycle Boys’ explicitly draws on hateful anti-gay stereotypes. ‘Recycling’ suggests that gay people ‘use’ a boy (whether sexually or otherwise) on a single occasion or over a shirt duration, before not only discarding him but leaving him to be picked up by another. Moreover, this t-shirt draws on and promotes the hateful stereotype of gay people as sexually promiscuous, for recycling is a weekly, if not daily, activity. To exacerbate the exceedingly overt anti-gay message signified by the t-shirt’s text, the choice of the word ‘boy’, though certainly suited to the age-range of Hot Topic clientele, is associated with pedophilia, another hateful anti-guy stereotype.

    In sum, the two t-shirts discussed above, ‘Recruiter’ and ‘I Recycle Boys’, do not express gay pride. On the contrary, they propagate hateful and false anti-gay stereotypes and ideologies. I encourage Hot Topic to immediately discontinue the sale of these t-shirts on both the website and in retail stores, and to consider more thoroughly the implications of future t-shirt designs more carefully.

    Sincerely,

    Joe Wasserman

  38. BiteMarkZombie - Elaine Blakely avatar

    BiteMarkZombie said 4 months ago

    Both t-shirts are very mild in terms of their message. They put me in mind of those hetro t-shirts that say "MILF" or "Female Body Inspector" or even the popular "I Love Cock" (actually saw one of them), its just that these t-shirts are aimed at gay people.

    And as a gay person myself, I find them tame and if they didn’t have the rainbow colours on them then maybe no one would even bring them up for discussion.

    I know I wouldn’t wear the "Recruiter" one but an "I’d Bang Kelly Clarkson" tee however....

  39. godmachine - Az' avatar

    godmachine said 4 months ago

    What does 'pro-gay' mean?

  40. BiteMarkZombie - Elaine Blakely avatar

    BiteMarkZombie said 4 months ago

    As in being "for" the gays, being happy for them being gay and basically that yeah, your cool with everything gay.

  41. godmachine - Az' avatar

    godmachine said 4 months ago

    hmmmmm thats wierd: 'happy for them being gay', i’m no more happy for them being gay as i am happy for someone being straight.

    so being pro-hetro is happy for people being hetro?

    pro-doggy is happy for ....wait this is weird- are you sure it means that?

  42. BiteMarkZombie - Elaine Blakely avatar

    BiteMarkZombie said 4 months ago

    Haha I see what you mean but yep thats what being "pro-something" is.

    Its just a shame that people have to say that they are "pro-gay" as there are still people who are so against it.

  43. godmachine - Az' avatar

    godmachine said 4 months ago

    can the term 'pro-choice' be used- coz i’d like to use that if possible.. pro-gay sounds like yr part of the 'recruiter' tee wearing gang hahahaha 'be gay or else!!' hahaha

  44. Randomentity - Courtney Varner avatar

    Randomentity said 4 months ago

    Godmachine said: can the term 'pro-choice' be used- coz i’d like to use that if possible.. pro-gay sounds like yr part of the 'recruiter' tee wearing gang hahahaha 'be gay or else!!' hahaha

    man, i just got a mental image of a bunch of body builders in ass-less chaps and leather and chains beating up a southern baptist preacher....oh geeze.

  45. BiteMarkZombie - Elaine Blakely avatar

    BiteMarkZombie said 4 months ago

    Randomentity said:
    Godmachine said: can the term 'pro-choice' be used- coz i’d like to use that if possible.. pro-gay sounds like yr part of the 'recruiter' tee wearing gang hahahaha 'be gay or else!!' hahaha

    Lol if you are pro gay or pro choice for people being gay then its all good.

    And ass-less chaps - eeeeeewwwwwwwwwww lol

  46. dobi - Rob Dobi avatar

    dobi said 4 months ago

    i don’t know, i think it is kind of funny that the same store that sells insane clown posse merch has these shirts for sale.

  47. jaynajaynajayna - Jayna avatar

    jaynajaynajayna said 4 months ago

    BiteMarkZombie said: Both t-shirts are very mild in terms of their message. They put me in mind of those hetro t-shirts that say "MILF" or "Female Body Inspector" or even the popular "I Love Cock" (actually saw one of them), its just that these t-shirts are aimed at gay people.

    That’s exactly how I feel, there are plenty of shirts for slutty fat (straight) chicks out there, and tees that try to capture machismo through a phrase across the chest for guys. I remember I was sitting outside a cafe the other day and a duded walked buy wearing an "I’d do me" shirt and we all started (playfully) harassing him.

    I understand people saying that this is propagating a stereotype of promiscuity, but the only people who are going to be wearing these are weird and stupid young teenagers who probably either want to be gay or are feigning homosexuality in a subconscious ploy for attention. And most teenagers are promiscuous, or want to be and are simply unable.

    I mean it’s hot topic, they’ll be turned over within a month anyway, and most things in there (excluding everyones awesome band tees) are dumb and pretty much everyone of importance understands that or will at some point.

  48. Randomentity - Courtney Varner avatar

    Randomentity said 4 months ago

    jaynajaynajayna said:
    BiteMarkZombie said: Both t-shirts are very mild in terms of their message. They put me in mind of those hetro t-shirts that say "MILF" or "Female Body Inspector" or even the popular "I Love Cock" (actually saw one of them), its just that these t-shirts are aimed at gay people.

    That’s exactly how I feel, there are plenty of shirts for slutty fat (straight) chicks out there, and tees that try to capture machismo through a phrase across the chest for guys. I remember I was sitting outside a cafe the other day and a duded walked buy wearing an "I’d do me" shirt and we all started (playfully) harassing him.

    I understand people saying that this is propagating a stereotype of promiscuity, but the only people who are going to be wearing these are weird and stupid young teenagers who probably either want to be gay or are feigning homosexuality in a subconscious ploy for attention. And most teenagers are promiscuous, or want to be and are simply unable.

    I mean it’s hot topic, they’ll be turned over within a month anyway, and most things in there (excluding everyones awesome band tees) are dumb and pretty much everyone of importance understands that or will at some point.

    can i start calling you "vajayna"?

  49. jaynajaynajayna - Jayna avatar

    jaynajaynajayna said 4 months ago

    if you want to be Greg Raslan in 8th grade at 3rd period then SURE

  50. thebutcher - thebutcher avatar

    thebutcher said 4 months ago

    Gordocreative said:
    thomcat said:
    LitoQ said: Q: What do you call a gay dinosaur A: Tyrannosoreass rex buh-rum chssssshhhhh

    Q: What do you call a gay guy in a wheelchair?

    A: Roll-aids.

    bum bum, bum!

    I hope you die a horrible death. seriously.

    Ok "Dirty" Sanchez.

  51. LitoQ - Q avatar

    LitoQ said 4 months ago

    Gordocreative said:
    thomcat said:
    LitoQ said: Q: What do you call a gay dinosaur A: Tyrannosoreass rex buh-rum chssssshhhhh

    Q: What do you call a gay guy in a wheelchair?

    A: Roll-aids.

    bum bum, bum!

    I hope you die a horrible death. seriously.

    Thats pretty extreme man, was ur uncle a trex or something?

  52. Randomentity - Courtney Varner avatar

    Randomentity said 4 months ago

    jaynajaynajayna said: if you want to be Greg Raslan in 8th grade at 3rd period then SURE

    he only tormented you because he liked you.
    VaJayna

  53. thebutcher - thebutcher avatar

    thebutcher said 4 months ago

    LitoQ & Thomcat pwnin' newbs.

  54. labyrinth - Nader Boraie avatar

    labyrinth said 4 months ago

    hot topic is wack.

  55. Joe - Joe avatar

    Joe said 4 months ago

    Godmachine said: What does 'pro-gay' mean?

    To resurrect this, as I think you’re referring to what I wrote, I agree with what people are saying 'pro-gay' means, but the phrase I used was 'pro-gay rights'. It’s analogous to any other 'pro-[group of people]'s rights'. I was just trying to lay out some positive common ground before criticizing them.

  56. swissarmyshark - AJ Paglia avatar

    swissarmyshark said 4 months ago

    Now hold on a sec, how do we know this cooper font rainbow tee is gay?

    Isn’t it possible Skittles is forming an army to take on the M&Ms

  57. Joe - Joe avatar

    Joe said 4 months ago

  58. heavyprints - Nick avatar

    heavyprints said 4 months ago

    ajpagliadesign said: Now hold on a sec, how do we know this cooper font rainbow tee is gay? Isn’t it possible Skittles is forming an army to take on the M&Ms

    I think that 300 M&M’s would be badass. Or any candy really. THIS IS HERSHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEY! -boot-

  59. gengen - mustache&friends avatar

    gengen said 4 months ago

    Joe said:
    Godmachine said: do gay people 'recruit'? I’m thinking this tee is homophobic. Its a pretty old fashioned idea that homosexuals are sexual preditors that actively seek out people to 'convert', isnt it. Its the retoric of some religions conservative. You may as well have a tee in a rainbow font thats says 'I have aids'. or is it playing up to that...is it ironic etc... do i need to shut the hell up...?

    I think you’re totally right about the tee propagating some pretty negative stereotypes. Don’t shut up! It’s impossible to figure out exactly what it 'means' out of context, however. It would be most meaningful on an actual person, otherwise we’re just assuming some sort of wearer.

    I could imagine this being worn mostly by gay people in a 'genuo-ironic' manner. That is, they genuinely mean the surface meaning ('I am gay') but ironically align themselves with an anti-gay rhetoric of 'sexuality is a choice', 'I’m going to taint your children', etc.

    And holy crap, this other HT 'pride' (if you can call it that, which you can’t, because the following shirt is awful) tee is terrible:

    'Hi, I’m gay and am therefore promiscuous! I have a new sexual partner weekly!'
    God damn it, this really pisses me off. I am sending Hot Topic an email. If they don’t respond, they get a letter. If you feel strongly, I encourage you to do the same: http://community.hottopic.com/customerservice/talktous.asp

    This is the text of the email/letter:

    To whom it may concern:

    I am writing to you about your line of ‘Pride’ t-shirts. Although I am strongly pro-gay rights, I feel that I must express my disappointment, frustration, and even anger at some of the ‘Pride’ t-shirts in the Hot Topic store. Hot Topic is currently selling two t-shirts that propagate anti-gay ideologies and misinformation: ‘Recruiter’ and ‘I Recycle Boys’. It will be easiest to examine each t-shirt individually, starting with ‘Recruiter’. I hope that my arguments about the meanings of these t-shirts is convincing enough to effect the immediate removal of these shirts from the Hot Topic website and Hot Topic retail stores, as well as to foster more thoughtful consideration over the potential impact of gay ‘Pride’ products on the part of Hot Topic.

    Obviously, the surface meaning of all products in Hot Topic’s ‘Pride’ category is that the wearer is gay. However, the text of ‘Recruiter’ has some seriously negative implications: 1) that sexuality is a choice, which is part of the standard anti-gay rhetoric, and 2) that gay people are actively attempting to convince (or from an anti-gay perspective, ‘corrupt’) others, thus reproducing the perception that gay people are a ‘threat’ to the pseudo-moralistic norms of anti-gay ‘activists’.

    The second shirt, ‘I Recycle Boys’, is even worse. Unlike the previous shirt, ‘I Recycle Boys’ explicitly draws on hateful anti-gay stereotypes. ‘Recycling’ suggests that gay people ‘use’ a boy (whether sexually or otherwise) on a single occasion or over a shirt duration, before not only discarding him but leaving him to be picked up by another. Moreover, this t-shirt draws on and promotes the hateful stereotype of gay people as sexually promiscuous, for recycling is a weekly, if not daily, activity. To exacerbate the exceedingly overt anti-gay message signified by the t-shirt’s text, the choice of the word ‘boy’, though certainly suited to the age-range of Hot Topic clientele, is associated with pedophilia, another hateful anti-guy stereotype.

    In sum, the two t-shirts discussed above, ‘Recruiter’ and ‘I Recycle Boys’, do not express gay pride. On the contrary, they propagate hateful and false anti-gay stereotypes and ideologies. I encourage Hot Topic to immediately discontinue the sale of these t-shirts on both the website and in retail stores, and to consider more thoroughly the implications of future t-shirt designs more carefully.

    Sincerely,

    Joe Wasserman

    joe, you are awesome. this is extremely well written. i completely agree with all your points. thank you for writing this to them, i will be writing them aswell.

  60. Joe - Joe avatar

    Joe said 4 months ago

    Gen (et al.): I accidentally included 'I am sending Hot Topic an email. If they don’t respond, they get a
    letter:' before the salutation of my letter... whoops! But yeah, a customer service representative already apologized 'for the inconvenience' and forwarded it to 'the proper department' today. I’m glad they responded so quickly! Thanks for the compliment on my writing; I’ve been getting pretty much practice in college from some very demanding professors. And I learned the PROBLEM method of writing, which is amazingly effective:

    • common ground
    • destabilization (of the common ground)
    • stakes/why should anybody care/relevance
    • resolution/what is to be done/research agenda

    Hurray for having a wonderful prof who taught at The Little Red Schoolhouse!

  61. Matt Rupp - Matt Rupp avatar

    Matt Rupp said 4 months ago

    To each their own.

    Lucky Charms is the only rainbow for me.

  62. BiteMarkZombie - Elaine Blakely avatar

    BiteMarkZombie said 4 months ago

    ajpagliadesign said: Now hold on a sec, how do we know this cooper font rainbow tee is gay? Isn’t it possible Skittles is forming an army to take on the M&Ms

    LMAO

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