GLAAD achieved it’s mission. Today, CNN announced that Roland Martin has been suspended indefinitely for the non-gay friendly Superbowl tweets that landed him in the hot seat with the Gay Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation Sunday, and I think we all know that indefinite suspension is code for he will be fired—eventually.

Angry, I immediately took to Twitter, and was probably on my way to proving I learned nothing from this situation about Twitter restraint, when a tweet from Carolyn Edgar stopped me in tracks. She wrote:

“Instead of getting upset that GLAAD had the juice to get Roland Martin suspended, how about we figure out how to get some of that juice?”

As much as that’s not something Roland Martin supporter’s want to hear in this instance, the words are a dose of harsh reality. If people want Roland Martin to maintain his post at CNN, they’re going to have to figure out how to be just as clever, convincing, organized, and dedicated to the cause as GLAAD, because they’ve basically achieved their goal.

A lot of people say as a black person, if you are upset at Roland Martin’s suspension then you should disagree with Don Imus’ firing but I think there is a crucial difference there. Don made his racist remarks on-air with Fox, Roland tweeted homosexually insensitive comments from a personal Twitter account that are not reflective of CNN. When you look at those facts, black people have a right to be mad. Although this isn’t necessarily a race issue, it is interesting that neither CNN contributor’s Dana Loesch or Erik Erickson were fired for the controversial statements made on their radio shows, yet a Twitter comment gets this response.

But shouldn’t we do more than get angry? A lot of people liken the gay rights struggle to that of black civil rights activists, and while I don’t agree with that comparison, there are some things the black community can learn from the gay community because in an overly simplistic, two-worded summation of LGBTQ activism: they move.

That’s sort of the unspoken joke about gay activists—they have eyes and ears everywhere and they will make you pay for saying, doing, and possibly even thinking anything remotely anti-gay. Why can’t the black community do the same? In just the last few months, several racially insensitive situations have come to light. Newt Gingrich singled out black people as welfare hoarders, French Elle said we’re only stylish because we adopt white codes of fashion, Michelle Obama’s been blasted for her backside, likened to the Grinch and Marie Antoinette, and been labeled an angry black woman, Tea Party members have called for the lynching of the entire Obama family, and there are countless other instances that are too numerous to name. But every single one of those individuals still has his position and is free to offend the black community again while we go one writing open letters and waiting for change.

Commentors on this site say it best whenever suspect behavior is exposed: simply stop supporting it. But there’s another next step that has to go beyond not buying a rap CD, or watching reality TV, or purchasing a magazine—organized action. It’s not enough for a handful of people to make a personal decision about what they expose themselves too, the black community’s agenda has to be made known and be seen clearly. GLAAD didn’t hesitate to bring popular members of the gay community in on his efforts to get Roland Martin fired. They did their homework, they disseminated information, and they got results. Now it’s our turn.

Do you think Roland Martin and Don Imus’s suspension are equal? Do you think there are things the black community can learn about getting results from gay activists?

Brande Victorian is a blogger and culture writer in New York City. Follower her on Twitter at @be_vic.

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The superbowl is a time for fun and ish talking both in person, and now thanks to social media like Twitter, online. But there’s always someone who takes on the role of inappropriate police, and this year that “someone” is the Gay Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).

The alliance is calling for CNN to fire political correspondent Roland Martin for tweets sent yesterday that they deem homophobic. The situation all started when Roland saw David Beckham’s H & M ad and tweeted:

“If a dude at your Super Bowl party is hyped about David Beckham’s H&M underwear ad, smack the ish out of him!”

GLAAD immediately responded with the tweet:

“@rolandsmartin Advocates of gay bashing have no place at @CNN #SuperBowl #LGBT”

Roland, a man who argues for a living, shot back, tweeting:

“@glaad @CNN well you’re clearly out of touch and clueless with what I tweeted. Way to assume, but you’re way off base.”

Roland then sent out tweets to his followers, letting them know his comment was really bashing soccer—which he does frequently—not gay men, but it didn’t help his cause when he later wrote:

“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”

Unsurprisingly, GLAAD has now launched a full-fledged campaign to have Roland fired, saying “Advocates of anti-gay violence have no place at CNN or Time Warner.” They also reference Roland’s defense of Tracy Morgan’s controversial routine about what he would do if his son was gay, saying:

“Martin’s tweets today advocating violence against gay people weren’t an accident — they are a part of a larger pattern for Martin.”

Roland’s history of supporting conversion therapy is also being used to back up GLAAD’s stance. In 2006, he wrote on his website that his wife is an ordained Baptist minister who has counseled many men and women to walk away from the gay lifestyle, and to live a chaste life, seemingly encouraging others to do the same.

It doesn’t appear that CNN has made any comment on the situation just yet, but GLAAD likely won’t back down until the network does, or they get what they want.

Do you think GLAAD is being too sensitive or does Roland Martin seem to have a history of anti-gay/homophobic behavior? Should CNN fire him?

Brande Victorian is a blogger and culture writer in New York City. Follower her on Twitter at @be_vic.

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