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Gay travel: South Carolina in an uproar over advertising campaign
South Carolina is outraged over an advertisement campaign by Amro Worldwide, a UK specialist in gay and lesbian travel, which labeled the Palmetto State "so gay" in a series of posters throughout the London Underground.Looking to boost its profile among the UK's gay and lesbian community, Amro devised its 'so gay' campaign nearly a year ago and reached out to various U.S. tourism boards last October to see if they would participate.
Shortly thereafter, Atlanta, Boston, Las Vegas, New Orleans and Washington, D.C. confirmed their participation. Last November, South Carolina jumped on board.
The campaign debuted at Underground stations in Leicester Square and Covent Garden during London's recent Gay Pride Week celebrations. For South Carolina, the posters touted the state's gay beaches and Civil War-era plantations.
Apparently, it seems that South Carolina tourism officials didn't really understand what they was agreeing to. At first, top officials said the campaign sent a positive message to gay travelers. But as outrage increased, they now say they knew nothing about the campaign and are disavowing participation, according to MSNBC.com, refusing to pay the campaign's promoter, Out Now, the $5,000 fee for the posters.
The low ranking official in the state's department of parks, recreation and tourism department who got the state involved with the campaign in the first place has resigned.
Oran Smith, the president of a South Carolina conservative activist group, tells MSNBC.com: "I think with today's economy, we have to be really smart with our tourism dollars, and South Carolina's market, very clearly, is the family-friendly market. So if we want to spend our dollars in a way that's wise, we need to go after our market, and our market is families."
Amro Worldwide wants to know what all the fuss is about. The view among many in the gay and lesbian community is that being 'so gay' is not the putdown it perhaps once was, but rather a positive thing, the company says.
Just don't expect Main Street South Carolinians to agree. One Charleston resident who spoke to MSNBC.com says, "We're so gay? Nah. Wrong state. Go to California."
It's worth noting that the other U.S. destinations involved in the campaign are not complaining.
Dispatches from around the world
Filed under: Activism, North America, United States
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 12)
lin Jul 15th 2008 8:44PM
South Carolina is all good. If you dont like it please just dont come here.
j8kesn8ke Jul 15th 2008 8:45PM
7Jul 15th 2008 @ 8:32PM
Erika said...
Families do not come in every formation. Not around here anyway. Thats right go somewhere else. Pedophiles carrying their 5 year old victims around see it as "two people in love" so what? Its perverted and we dont want the spirit of homosexuality to gain a stronghold in our state like Cali has. THATS why its burning down.
-------------------------------------------------------------This kind of ignorant intolerance is what prejudice is all about. Idiots connecting pedophilia and homosexuality need an education. And the part " that's why California is burning down" goes beyond utter stupidity.
MR. AP Jul 15th 2008 8:48PM
this is plain old nasty!!! two people in love??? blah!!! disgusting!!! it's more like two perverts in love!!!
timothy Jul 15th 2008 9:27PM
Shall I embroider that so you can hang it over your bed??? "Two perverts in love"
Heather Jul 15th 2008 8:51PM
I moved to South Carolina about three years ago. There is very little "southern hospitality" here. There is a lot of snobbery from the retired folks here. There is also a lot of poverty. It is filled with poorly educated people across all income levels but there isn't anyone here that thinks it is their problem. South Carolina is in a sad state.
westcoast gangsta Jul 15th 2008 8:52PM
no wonder their pissed since good ole' south kakalacky is full of brain dead rednecked a**holes.
Joe Downey Jul 15th 2008 8:56PM
The problem with South Carolina teh FBI and Justice will crack down if you kill Blacks. That is not the case with Gays , Gays are the New Millinumum N's. Also who would want to go to SC anyway nothing but Southern Baptists who are the World's BIGGEST BIGOTS
Danny Jul 15th 2008 8:54PM
I've been to SC plenty of times, and there are plenty of good people and places to go. Sorry SC, but your so gay you should be proud of it.
cathy rohrscheib Jul 15th 2008 8:56PM
go to key west you would be more happy with the open minds serious. why go were your not goin to enjoy it. as for family i understand what he was saying its not anti. they feel they can get more for there money with the screamming meamies bring the lil darlins . got it now
DoyleKristina Jul 15th 2008 11:05PM
HEY BUDDY! Don't label me by where I live. 1.) I don't have a sheep. 2.) I'd rather make out with another girl down at the Pantheon on one of their leopard print couches. We aren't all hicks - promise.
Rachel Jul 15th 2008 9:04PM
I am a SC state resident and I didn't know we had gay beaches according to the Amro add. If we are so gay, then why is it that the gay people I know go to Altanta on the weekends? Whoever is visiting South Carolina gay or straight we just don't want to be shocked by what we see. If you behave like family, then you are welcome here. But please don't dress up in drag and walk our malls.
GO COCKS! Jul 15th 2008 9:00PM
This is so funny. South Carolina is "so gay" HAHAHAHAHAHAHa!!
How can they deny it? They ran that ad all over the world and PAID for it!
HAHAHAHAHHAAHHAHA
GO COCKS!
Aarwin Orelli Jul 15th 2008 8:59PM
I am not surprised so many people in South Carolina object to gay tourism. They quote their bibles and condemn homosexuality, just like they used to quote their bible and refuse to free their slaves. It is still "the South," which means they are overall undereducated, under informed, stubbornly wrong-headed and determinedly prejudice against most everything. One brilliant post actually insinuated that God is burning California for accepting sexual diversity, while at the same time accusing homosexuals who raise children of being pediphiles, despite all acceptable research which shows that over 75% of pediphiles are heterosexual males. What can be done about such blatant distortion of truth? Leave them to heaven!
retired 777 capt Jul 15th 2008 9:00PM
I LIKED IT A LOT BETTER WHEN THEY WERE STILL IN THE CLOSET. MAYBE IT'S TIME TO GET IN THEIR FACES.
Joe Downey Jul 16th 2008 12:37AM
777 driver do you know Capt Brad a DRIVER in more ways than one for AA
retired 777 capt Jul 16th 2008 2:11PM
I CAN'T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT ANY AA PILOTS.
AJ Jul 15th 2008 9:14PM
Keith ,
you are so funny ! lol
there will always be someone , that will have something to say ..
Joe Downey Jul 15th 2008 9:12PM
wasn't Susan Smith form Union SC there is great Family values. Fantasize about shacking up with the Manager at the Local Piggy Wiggy, BUt then there is those pesky kids. OH that is right I can just drown them. Real Family Vaules, funny no death pentalty for SUZIE
Jack Jul 15th 2008 9:05PM
I use to live in SC and I can attest with the people on here who think that it's a backward, backwater, intolerate, ignorant group of undereducation marons. YOU'RE RIGHT! They are stuck in 18th century thinking. And they are VERY prejudice people.
But MOST of all they are hypocritical. They will jump out front to make the kind of homo-intolerant statements you see from them on this site, but they will support any and all kind of corruption that they think will give them a benefit or a leg up.
How else could you explain the continued support and election of Strom Thurman, who ran on a racist, segregationist views, but EVERYBODY in SC knew that he had Black CHILDREN?
If South Carolina left the Union RIGHT NOW, the United States would lose nothing significant. We could do without the peaches they provide to GA, the peach state, if it meant that we didn't have to call these backward nuts fellow citizens.
Tee Jul 15th 2008 10:02PM
It is truly a shame when the writer of this report can't even write proper English...... "Apparently, it seems that South Carolina tourism officials didn't really understand what they was agreeing to". What they "was" agreeing to? That should be "what they were agreeing to". Ebonics is now accepted in the news world. What is America coming to?
Gay or not, there are more important issues going on in the world than to be in an uproar over advertising that has nothing to do with all the problems we have in the world right now. Let’s get our priority straight and focus on the economy, the wars, the gas problem, world starvation… those are issues to write about.