(above : Stonewall rioters, 1969. Not shown : Larry Johnson)
It’s been said on more than one occasion that if you’re a prominent public figure, Tweeting is kind of like holding a press conference, except you don’t have to answer questions (or put on pants). That much is very clear to Chiefs RB Larry Johnson, who chose Twitter as a venue to bury K.C. head coach Todd Haley hours after a 37-7 loss to the Chargers, a somewhat foolhardy move considering it came after the trade deadline. From the Star’s Kent Babb :
A message posted on Johnson’s profile, whose username Sunday about 7 p.m. stated: “My father played for the coach from ‘rememeber the titans’. Our coach played golf. My father played for redskins briefley. Our coach. Nuthn.”
Johnson continued the rant, and, in later responses directed toward Johnson’s Twitter followers, contained inflammatory remarks about gays. In a reference to someones profile picture, Johnson called it a “fag pic” and called the person a “Christopher street boy,” a reference to a predominantly gay section in New Yorks Greenwich Village. Johnson’s Twitter profile was taken private and some posts were deleted.
On Monday in the Chiefs locker room, Johnson used another gay slur after saying he wouldn’t speak to reporters.
Johnson, sitting next to second-year running back Jamaal Charles, told reporters that “I’m not talking till Thursday,” his usual day of speaking with reporters.
Then Johnson turned away and whispered.
“Get your faggot ass out of here,” he said.
Johnson’s agent, Peter Schaffer, said Johnson’s tweets were his own but said the running back intended to compliment his father — Larry Johnson Sr. is the defensive line coach at Penn State — and not disparage Haley.