GLAAD to CNN: Fire Roland Martin for Antigay Comments

CNN commentator Roland Martin made it a not-so-super Sunday with a tweet and a Facebook posting widely perceived to be homophobic, and the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation has called on the network to fire him.

GLAAD reports that after retailer H&M’s Super Bowl commercial featuring soccer player David Beckham, Martin tweeted to his nearly 95,000 Twitter followers, “If a dude at your Super Bowl party is hyped about David Beckham’s H&M underwear ad, smack the ish out of him! #superbowl.”

In response, GLAAD wrote, “@rolandsmartin Advocates of gay bashing have no place at @CNN #SuperBowl #LGBT.” Martin replied that GLAAD was “way off base” and suggested that his tweet was a joke about soccer fans, not gays.

Earlier in the day, he had posted on his Facebook fan page, “Who the hell was that New England Patriot they just showed in a head to toe pink suit? Oh, he needs a visit from #teamwhipdatass.”

GLAAD reports that Martin has a history of antigay statements, noting that he defended comedian Tracy Morgan’s homophobic stand-up performance (for which Morgan has apologized) and boasts on his website that his wife “has counseled many men and women to walk away from the gay lifestyle.”

In a message on its website, GLAAD concludes, “Martin’s tweets today advocating violence against gay people weren’t an accident — they are a part of a larger pattern for Martin. Anti-gay violence in America is a serious problem facing millions of Americans. It’s no joke. CNN should fire Roland Martin.”