One of the unexpected reactions to Donald Trump’s general deplorableness and his specific comments about grabbing women “by the p-ssy” is that a bunch of awesome dudes have been coming out and talking about how those kinds of comments and actions are despicable, offensive and wrong. While women don’t need the big, brave men to come and protect us from a radioactive dumpster fire, it’s nice that many men have wanted their ally-voices to be heard. Here’s LeBron James – who recently endorsed Hillary Clinton – speaking about what he thought about Trump’s comments:
LeBron on Donald Trump: "That's not locker room talk. That's trash talk." pic.twitter.com/3optkXraM3
— Hayden Grove (@H_Grove) October 12, 2016
Can I just say? I really like LeBron. Truly. He’s growing into such a wonderful advocate and ally. It’s amazing to see.
Meanwhile, Joe Biden appeared on Seth Meyers’ show last night. Meyers has been ripping Trump apart on a daily basis, and this week, Meyers’ show is filming in Washington, so that’s how Biden came to appear on it. As many know, Biden was the author of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) in 1990 and he has been a long-time advocate for women’s issues for decades. When asked about the tape, Biden said: “First of all, what I found astounding is that he would so publicly — no matter who he was talking to — that he would acknowledge that he engaged in the textbook definition of sexual assault. I mean, this is absolutely outrageous behavior. I’ve spent more of my career trying to figure out how to change the culture in this country so that we treat women with respect and with dignity…The cardinal sin of all is a man raising his hand and taking advantage of women. I can’t understand how anyone can justify the abuse of power.”
And Tom Hanks is currently promoting Inferno and he was asked about the Trump Tape and Hanks maybe had the best reaction because he didn’t default to the “I have a mother, I have a wife” explanation for his reaction. Hanks said: “I’m offended as a man. I’m not offended as a husband or a father, I’m offended as a guy. That’s just not right, I’m sorry. It’s not right at work. It’s not right in the locker room. It’s wrong. Period. The end. That’s all.”
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Thanks for this post. I think we needed it.
+1
Agreed. As the election draws nearer….I’m in even more of an anxious state.
According o the statisticians at FiveThirtyEight, as if today HRC has an 87.1% chance of winning. Try not to be too anxious that he might win and try to enjoy watching a xenophobic misogynist burn his image to the ground and take the reputations of his supporters down with him.
Meemow: I’m enjoying the cheetoh-sh!tshow at this point. Hopefully HRC is a better president than I anticipate. Obama exceeded my expectations by miles, so you never know…
Separately, I am seeing several men in my life in a whole new light.
Anyone who defends this talk I see now as a potential threat. If you are fine with Drumpf discussing assault I assume you are fine with assault, and I further assume I am in danger in your presence. I will act accordingly.
Exactly. If this behavior seems okay to someone, then to me it indicates that engaging in that behavior is acceptable for that someone. And that’s all I need to know about that person.
Ditto Tate. I so needed it.
Thank you SO MUCH for this post.
My favorite quote oddly enough came from a former pro wrestler:
“This isn’t locker room talk. This is Ted Bundy talk….”
So true.
Oh god, you’re right! I recently finished reading a book about Bundy so he’s sort of been on my mind, and yup, this hits the nail on the head.
Amen. Good on that wrestler for speaking out.
So sad that we are down to a countable amount of men for not going along with the Republican candidate for President’s pro-sexual assault statements.
Yes! This, exactly.
And the thing that just floors me is the defense he makes. “I didn’t do any of those things, I didn’t do what that woman said, JUST LOOK AT HER”? It’s not “I didn’t do it,” it’s “I didn’t do it to HER because she’s not good looking enough for me to bother!”
This man is mentally ill. And there is something important missing in the brains of the folks who continue to blindly support him. I really believe this.
@Elise sorry for a bit of negativity, but do you remember Damon Wayans ‘defending’ Bill Cosby more than a year ago? “Just listen to what they’re saying and some of them really [are] un-rape-able. I just look at them and go, ‘You don’t want that. Get out of here.” SMDH.
On a related topic, just on the opposite side of the enjoyability spectrum: I absolutely loved Michelle Obama’s speech, and the fact that she emphasized that, “to dismiss this as everyday locker-room talk is an insult to decent men everywhere.” Loved her for it.
ETA: Thanks for this post, Kaiser.
He’s right, everyone should be offended as a person because it’s just plain wrong. Go Tom! And I love VP Biden, he’s such a wonderful person.
Joe forever. I adore that man.
This, too. The more I hear from Joe Biden, the more I regret that he didn’t win the nomination, and even more that his son died so tragically early. I wouldn’t mind a Biden dynasty.
Yes. Some much-needed positivity. Love it, thank you. I wish there were more and they were louder. It’s always the assh*les who are so damn loud.
Thank you, thank you. I’m loving that men are speaking out. Painting a fingernail opens a dialogue that is exactly what we need.
Often, things have to get really ugly before they get better. As hurtful as it is, blatant racism and misogyny is less dangerous than the hush-hush type. This gives the world an opportunity to speak out, and I am so glad people are doing so.
My little guy is only ten, and young for these conversations, but I am learning and will be better equipped when the time comes. It kills me that I need to talk to my 12 year old daughter about this crap. At least she has a mother who will support her- I won’t even go into the shite my mother brought me up with about sexuality.
Tom Hanks gets it. Everyone else does too, of course. But Tom Hanks didn’t need to qualify us as mothers or daughters to understand that NO HUMAN BEING deserves to be violated in such a heinous way. I’m not going to get all teary eyed about human decency, but i’m glad that a billion million MEN are calling him out on DT’s depraved understanding of how to treat women or what goes on in locker rooms.
Yes, exactly this. It’s an awful way to treat a human being. More than anything so far, the fact that drumpf admits he has done this to women reveals precisely how low his regard for us is.
LeBron – be still my heart
Thank you for posting this Kaiser.
It’s been said here before, but Tom Hanks is a national treasure.
👏🏻 for Biden as well.
I know, I love this man!
Thank you.
Tom Hanks for the win. This kind of shit is just as offensive to men, because it says yes all men are disgusting, depraved pigs. Good on these guys for speaking out to let the world know that they can do better.
Yes! I said this to my dad, when he commented about being offended as a father, that he should be offended that people are saying this is normal for men. That people are saying he talks like this. I wasn’t expecting it but he lost his top! “Damn straight I’ve never talked like that! I played sports & I was in Viet Nam for Christ sake! My friends never talk like that! Ahhhhh!”
My husband has been amazing through this and has been thinking about sexual violence in the workplace from the stories women have shared. He is a boss & it wasn’t on his radar since he is not a perp of sexual violence or a victim but he really got to thinking about it and what he can do to make his workplace safer.
May god, please, tell me something good will come of this shit storm and people will call out sexism more & things will change a little faster???
I love Biden, Hanks & LeBron. “It’s trash talk”. So true!
Hi MC2~ You say you love Biden, Hanks & LeBron. I so agree. That said, you forgot someone – the MOST important someone in your world. I love what your husband is doing! Hug him for me, please!
I ❤️ Tom Hanks, and the fact that he just Said it a few words, just clone the guy, i think he should Live 4ever, what a man!the other guys on this post too, i cannot hear Wright Now what Biden Said But i heard LeBron, YOU can just SEE the disgust in His face and tonality Along whit the actual comments, of course.real men!
They are awesome and represent what I think of as a “real man” (in a complimentary sense).
Honk for Tom!
Thank you. Do keep them coming, please.
“In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” Martin Luther King, Jr.
This, exactly. There was an article in my local paper about local GOP officials who stand by Trump. One woman could not be reached for comment by phone or email, and she’s generally vocal in giving our local reporter comments. Her silence speaks volumes to me.
What a great post and…I never thought I’d say this about LeBron a few years ago…what awesome men.
This.
Thank you, dudes for women! These guys are great. Also I truly wish Joe would have ran. Maybe we wouldn’t be living in fear today if he did.
Joe Biden is a good, good man.
Just seeing his photo here actually brought a tear to my eye.
I think so too.
I adore Biden too. He has worked tirelessly for a long time. Someone mentioned VAWA; he also was a prime mover for annual funding for CASA for children.
I love Joe. Do you think he’ll retire after this? I hate to see him go.
Love Joe!!
In a better world no one should live in fear of HRC winning in front of Trump either.
I am waiting on news about Tom Brady, Trump’s golf partner. What does he talk about in his locker room?
yes, especially considering Tom Brady’s wife is a Latina immigrant (albeit a rich one).
He says ‘Thank you for the interview. Good night.” Straight up did not answer the question and ended the interview. Ugh.
Alright LeBron. You broke me. I like you.
Clevelander here. Welcome to the club 🙂
Thank you for this, thank goodness we have some good men that understand. My fiance had to talk me off a ledge yesterday. He won’t let me put up a banner that says November 8, We Grab the Pussy Back, even with asterisks! Oh well, I love you ladies!
I would pay cash money to see that banner!!!
Oh my gosh I think I love you. Hang the banner!
Honks for all the good men.
I didn’t think it was possible to like Tom Hanks MORE than I already did! He’s awesome.
Look up his BBC interview when asked who he is voting for and why. Adore.
I cannot thank you enough for this post, Kaiser. And to my fellow CBers: once again reading your comments makes my day. XXXOOO to all <3
Celebitchy has truly become a community for me as a result of this election.
I love that LeBron won’t even speak the creep’s name.
I love you, Tom Hanks.
Thank god for decent allies. That’s an important thing.
D.C. or Washington state?
Thank you for this post. We really needed it.
I don’t take joy in other people’s misery, but in this one case……I want to see Donald Trump’s face when he loses. After all of the people he has called “loser”……….I really, really want it to hit home. I want him to lose by the largest margin ever recorded in an election in US History. I want him to be so embarrassed he moves to Russia.
Probably won’t happen, but a girl can dream……….
I think this situation, although horrible, has been given to us as a gift. All of these years we’ve lived with sexism that people claim isn’t there but we can feel it and see it every day. Now the polite facade is being ripped off…..and we are discussing it openly. The pressure and outrage that we are often made to feel separately as women is being supported by the media and our good guy allies out there. It is time for us to stop being polite in the face of people who aren’t polite to us. One voice all together, ladies and gentlemen! We’ve got to call out casual sexism where we see it and STAMP IT OUT. I often find I will call out people when they are racist or homophobic or ageist etc etc etc but often just clam up when sexism towards me rears its ugly head. Why am I so reluctant to speak up for myself? Because I was taught to be “polite”?
I can brush this under the rug and go back to life as usual because it’s more comfortable or I can, for once in my polite life, finally let myself get angry. Because I am angry. I am PISSED. Because I know there are LOTS of Donald Trumps out there who operate around me every day. I am done. I am fed up. I am adding my voice to the wave crashing back at him and the hatred he stands for and once he’s down, I will be on the lookout for the next one.
From now on the Donald Trumps of the world will be the ones who are uncomfortable. This election just turned me from a polite woman into a motivated one.