GLAAD, the organization dedicated to defending the rights of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people, acted swiftly after learning of Alec Baldwin’s latest homophobic rant.

The group allowed Baldwin to use its web site to apologize and/or attempt damage control, essentially shouting, “you’re already forgiven.” Here’s the group’s official response to Baldwin’s apology over his hateful Tweets directed at a British journalist:

Alec Baldwin is making it clear that the intent behind his tweets does not excuse his language, especially at a time when there were 11 incidents of violence against gay men in New York City just last month. As we all work to end such senseless acts of violence, allies like Baldwin are right to use these moments to reinforce support for the community and LGBT equality.

Compare that to the group’s reaction when director Brett Ratner said, “rehearsal is for fags” during a press interview. Ratner lost his coveted gig producing the Oscars and subsequently went through a GLAAD-approved re-education process culminating in a PSA shoot on behalf of gay rights.

Here’s GLAAD’s official statement regarding the Ratner incident:

Following meetings with GLAAD as well as outrage from community members and allies, Ratner issued an apology and today resigned as producer of the 84th Annual Academy Awards. GLAAD and Ratner are working to convene public discussions featuring leaders in the entertainment industry about promoting fair and accurate inclusions of LGBT people and stories. The discussions will address anti-LGBT jokes and slurs in films and on television today as well as their trickle-down effect into popular culture. The first event will take place in coming weeks with additional discussions to take place over the next three years. Additional details to follow.

Let’s not forget how GLAAD handled CNN anchor Roland Martin’s case. Martin, who is black, was castigated by GLAAD for a series of Tweets regarding a soccer player that were likely meant as humorous, not mean spirited.

Martin apologized. He also lost his job at CNN thanks, in part, to pressure from groups like GLAAD. 

Not everyone who supports gay rights is following GLAAD’s lead in the Baldwin case. Andrew Sullivan called out Baldwin in no uncertain terms on his web platform.

This is not just hate speech; it’s a specific call for other people to physically attack a gay man. It’s a call to violence against a specific person, which, last time I checked, was a crime. He’s a pro-gay liberal, so he may get a pass for this. He shouldn’t.

Sounds like Baldwin just did. Meanwhile, a Texas teenager is still in jail for making a threat on Facebook he said was an innocent joke.

Baldwin attempted some personal PR work today all the same, getting a friendly interview from Gothamist.com where he used the outlet to attack … the Tea Party as being filled with hate.

You get these body blows of all this hatred from people who, their profiles are almost identical, like “tea party mom, I love my job, I love my kids, I love my country #millitary #guns” and there’s a screaming eagle in the background of their profile, grasping some arrows and tanks rolling in the background and they all want to tell me how much they can’t stand my politics. And I go, “OK.” What kills me is these are people who want to put me out of business, so to speak, as fast as they possibly can, but they don’t want to put BP out of business who turned the Gulf of Mexico into a cesspool.

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