The LGBTQ advocacy group PFLAG on Tuesday rescinded the Straight for Equality in Media award it had given to MSNBC host Joy Reid, owing to her past writings about gay people.
Reid had apologized in December for comments she made about then-Republican politician Charlie Crist, but in recent days other posts from her blog "The Reid Report" have come to light. In these posts, Reid expressed qualified support for basketball star Tim Hardaway saying he "hates" gay people, although Reid has denied authorship of these posts.
PFLAG National bills itself as "the nation's first and largest organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) people, their families, and allies," and it issued a statement saying that it’s pulling Reid's award because of "new information."
"In light of new information, and the ongoing investigation of that information, we must at this time rescind our award to Ms. Reid," the statement reads.
PFLAG said it "appreciated" how Reid had addressed her comments about Crist, noting that her behavior was the example of an "ally."
"When we extended our invitation to Ms. Reid to honor her at our 45th anniversary celebration, we did so knowing about the blog posts from the late 2000s regarding Charlie Crist," PFLAG said. "We appreciated how she stepped up, took ownership, apologized for them, and did better—this is the behavior and approach we ask of any ally."
In one of the posts in question, Reid allegedly addressed Hardaway saying "I hate gay people" by saying it is normal for straight people to feel the same way.
"Keeping it real … most straight men feel exactly the same way, and would have the exact same reaction to the idea of stripping naked in a sweaty locker room in close quarters with a gay teammate," the post reads. "Most straight people cringe at the sight of two men kissing."
The author then admitted the comments "probably" made her homophobic.
In addition, old posts from "The Reid Report" included various jokes making fun of people in politics and media for being "totally gay."
Reid said the pieces are "fabricated" and part of an effort to discredit her.
"In December I learned that an unknown, external party accessed and manipulated material from my now-defunct blog, The Reid Report, to include offensive and hateful references that are fabricated and run counter to my personal beliefs and ideology," Reid said in a statement.
"Now that the site has been compromised I can state unequivocally that it does not represent the original entries," Reid added. "I hope that whoever corrupted the site recognizes the pain they have caused, not just to me, but to my family and communities that I care deeply about: LGBTQ, immigrants, people of color and other marginalized groups."