I think in addition to the much needed donations, everyone should contact their local gay newspapers and let them know about this lawsuit. Additionally, if you are on any LGBT listserves, send out news about the lawsuit. The more people that know about this, the better.

I may need help on this one. It takes forever for the gay rag, Lavender, to have someone write an article about this. So, I am writing in on this, but email to editor@lavendermagazine.com - the more people who write in, the better.

Sports are not really considered a draw for that magazine, but if people are interested, they will do a story.

Thanks!

The following is little blurb I wrote (well, re-wrote the story from the home page). Anyone should feel free to cut and paste this and use to e-mail to listserves and send to local LGBT press. Also re-write as you please.

Outsports.com, a website for LGBT athletes and LGBT sports fans, is being sued by an individual in North Carolina because his picture appeared on the website. His photograph was taken at the 2004 Los Angeles Marathon by a credentialed photographer and posted on the website along with many other runners at the marathon. The individual was not named on the website, nor was there any caption or text or anything else what would imply he is gay.

In the suit, the Plaintiff claims he is not gay and that his picture on Outsports caused him to suffer “extreme embarrassment, public humiliation, mental agony and damage to his name and reputation.”

The suit added that Outsports “knew or should have known that false depiction of Plaintiff as gay could subject Plaintiff to the general community’s ridicule, contempt and disgrace (regardless of Plaintiff’s being gay or otherwise), and to the gay community’s ridicule, contempt and disgrace (as Plaintiff was not gay.)”

This lawsuit is troubling for many different reasons. I think it’s safe to assume if the picture appeared on a website operated by a major media conglomerate (Fox, Disney/ABC, Viacom/CBS, etc., NBC Universal, etc) the plaintiff would not be suing. The owners and operators of Outsports.com run the website as a labor of love and work at other full time jobs, as they are not making money from the website. They do not have any type of libel or defamation liability insurance, and are trying to raise money to pay the legal bills from the LGBT community. Any donation, from $1000 to $10 would be appreciated.

To read more about the lawsuit: http://www.outsports.com/legal/legalstory.htm

To make a donation to the legal defense fund: http://www.outsports.com/legal/legaldefense.htm

This is now getting media attention:

N.C. athlete sues over photo on gay Web site

08/24/2004

By TIM WHITMIRE / Associated Press

A North Carolina man has sued a gay sports Web site, contending its use of a photograph of him at the Los Angeles Marathon caused him to suffer public humiliation. ...

Complete Article

Here's the same AP article without the login/registration requirement.

Well scottie, I took the liberty of using your message, and sent an email to all the DC area LGBT athletic clubs I could identify. Hopefully that will bring both more members to Outsports and more support against this idiotic lawsuit.

I've also submitted Scottie's blurb, to the local GLBT listserve (outgreensboro.com)... hopefully, that will alert more of our people to what's going on. Especially with this being a local story (plaintiff lives about 70 mi from here), the under-the-radar publicity surely can't hurt.

The same article on the Charlotte Observer site.

There will also be a followup in the Raleigh paper. You should read these stories.

Sarasota Herald-Tribune website has the same AP article.

I also went to ESPN's website and submitted it as a possible story for Outside the Lines. At least I think it's submitted. When I clicked on "submit" it didn't give me any kind of "thank you for your input" message or anything like that. It just took me back to the same page.

[ August 24, 2004, 06:46 PM: Message edited by: Joe in Philly ]

Just want to remind everyone that if Cyd and Jim do not raise a minimum of $10,000, this board could be shut down. If you don't think you can afford to make a gift, if you saved a dime a day, in 7 weeks you would have the $5.00 donation that many people have already made (actually, you'll have $4.90, I'll kick in the extra dime). Please think about it.

[ August 25, 2004, 06:41 AM: Message edited by: scottie ]

Scottie and the rest of the crew .... Let try a crazy idea outside the box and conduct a similutaneous fundraising event for Outsports' Defense Fund. We can hold game watching parties for the 1st MNF game in cities throughout the USA and Canada(LA, Chicago, NYC, Miami, Dallas, Boston, Toronto, Denver, SF, Seattle, San Diego) at selected gay bars and ask for donations. Maybe the bar owners will be willing to match our donations for the evening. Just recently, we opened up the 1st truly gay sports bar in Chicago with Crew so it will be interesting what a good network of gay men watching sports would raise in funds. Just my thoughts ... JT in Chicago

To date we've had contributions from 84 people. Thank you all so much! It means so much that we have such support from such loyal people. But let's not stop there.

At the risk of being completely behind the times, I'd like to correct a previous post (the first in this thread, actually). PlanetOut Partners, Inc. (now PlanetOut Inc.) operates the gay.com and planetout.com websites, but is not at all affiliated with Out, the Advocate or Alyson publishing.

I do, however, wish Cyd and Jim the best of luck in defending this frivolous claim.

Wow, 84 people in less than a week is fantastic. On the other hand, I see there are about 2500 Outsports registered message board users (and who knows how many clubhouse members), so there are a lot more people out there who should give to help Jim and Cyd fight this battle.

Another story in the Raleigh News Observer.

He's up shit creek without a paddle if you follow the law....

NJ

Wow, if they're complaining because the plaintiff was shown spreading his legs and smiling, many pictures we see of athletes (on Outsports and in many newspapers and magazines) would never see the light of day.

scottie, I sent you a private message. Thanks!

Hehehe, I wonder how the guy feels, now that the Raleigh paper (which is distributed all over the Triangle area), the Charlotte paper, the AP, etc, has published the lawsuit, making him look like a homophobe. If he didn't want publicity, he has it now.

I for one feel sorry for the guy....

I think he got bad legal advice from a publicity-seeking attorney. Hearing Sept. 27, I wonder if that is just a pretrial or docket call or what? If Cyd and Jim would let us know, I bet I could get some people up and attend the hearing, support is always a good thing.

I was thinking the same thing. I bet he's feeling right now, " Geezuz...why did I bring this up? Why did I bring this up!" (banging forehead with palm of head)

But, yeah, I do feel a bit badly for him, but not that his pic was shown. I feel badly that society or his family or his peers have made him feel this way. As with similar incidents, I hope he (and our society at large) grows from this and that the result is ultimately positive. Wouldn't it be great if the athlete had an epiphany and publicly stated that he is dropping the lawsuit. If he's after money, he could probably make more on a speaker's circuit going to high schools and colleges saying how this situation changed his attitude and beliefs. And he wouldn't have to pay legal fees which, given the paltry amount he is seeking, will pretty much eat up any financial gain.

To add to the discussion, here are some comments from Craig's List, an SF-based online discussion forum:

http://forums.craigslist.org/?ID=18383416


[Post modified for hyperlink format. - Outsports moderator]

[ August 25, 2004, 01:17 PM: Message edited by: m1 ]

I don't feel sorry for the guy at all. If he regrets starting this nonsense, he can just dismiss the case. Let's not blame lawyers for the greed/vengeance of the individuals who bring these kinds of lawsuits. (Not that I'm defending his lawyer either, who can't reasonably be expecting to make any money off this lame case --it's probably on contingency -- I'd guess he has an anti-gay ax to grind as well.)

[ August 25, 2004, 11:55 AM: Message edited by: quentinc ]

JT, Where's Crew located? AFT Chicago got a gay sports bar! I'm flying back there for Labor Day weekend - and the Meeechigan-Miami game in A2 - and would like to check it out! :cool:

84 contributors so far - way to go guys!

Just made my contribution through PayPal.

And to make it easier for people, here is the link so that you can do the same. Every little bit helps.

http://www.outsports.com/legal/legaldefense.htm

It requires a user name/password

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The URL was entered incorrectly. The link is now working. - Outsports moderator

http://forums.craigslist.org/?ID=18383416

[ August 25, 2004, 01:22 PM: Message edited by: m1 ]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by bballrob:

I for one feel sorry for the guy....

Ok, just to be on the record, I was kidding when I said I felt sorry for dear Chris. He didn't want publicity, and now he has more than his fair share, and probably feels backed into a corner, people have him labeled as homophobic, others see him as a bearer of the anti-gay cause, etc. Serves him right.

Who I am pissed at, more than anyone, is the lawyer, he should have handed the guy a tissue and said "get over it". But the guy has been quoted in major newspapers so he thinks this is his 15 minutes of fame. I hope the court sanctions him for bringing a frivilous lawsuit.

I don't feel sorry for him to the extent that I want this lawsuit to succeed or that I want others to feel his response was appropriate or that people should feel its ok to continue to abuse gays in legal ways.

Maybe I'm in the minority here, but I feel badly that he is so conflicted, that something or someone -- society, his friends, his lawyer, etc. -- forced him to do this. I think most of us understand the pain of being labeled as "gay," so while we not appreciate the lawsuit, we can understand his pain. Regardless of the outcome, I hope the athlete is able to come away from this with a renewed, more mature sense of himself and for the gay community.

I do like to believe that we live in a world where positive results can come from negative events, that the gay movement will be better off because one man tried to challenge the system and lost.

In a way, the publicity is good. Outsports is getting a lot of attention. And I imagine there are myriad straight guys questioning for the first time how they would respond if they were in the athlete's position. And I believe that many, many of those guys sincerely believe they wouldn't care and may voice their opinions to their buddies.

We will all be better by this situation.

[ August 25, 2004, 09:40 PM: Message edited by: PatSanFran ]

I know it's been mentioned before, but I'm curious to know exactly how he became aware of his picture being on the Outsports website. The poor guy needs to be a bit more secure with his sexuality and less concerned about what other people think.

Their reason for sueing is so obviously homophobic, it's ridiculous. It's funny because he seems to be looking directly into the camera and his smile makes him look like he knew he was being photographed. The various reports emphasize that his picture was taken while he was stretching. Big deal, that doesn't make him look gay, it makes him look like a smart athlete.

It's also interesting to see how the website's mission statement is twisted into something negative. It is so off-base, almost making it seem like a website to recruit people and turn them gay. It's so foreign for them to even consider that there are gay people in this world that actually enjoy sports. They automatically assume the website is being used for some freaky purpose.

When I first saw those marathon pictures, I just saw it as another fun event posted on the site, probably for a good cause and as usual, with great pictures and informative reporting. That guy being gay did not enter my mind at all.

There are so many pictures of athletes on Outsports, because this is a sports-based website. It doesn't mean every athlete pictured on this site is gay.

I'm sorry that Jim and Cyd have to go through this because of someone's fear, insecurities and perhaps some greed. Just know that there is a lot of support here for you both and my check is on it's way.

[ August 25, 2004, 03:44 PM: Message edited by: Jorel ]

I had a thought that maybe somebody visited Outsports, saw his pic, saw him in real life, and tried to hit on him. I could see how that would be embarrassing, but it still wouldn't be enough for a lawsuit.

Why would that be embarassing? I have a straight male friend who's been hit on a number of times. His response is a smile and "No thanks." If someone's embarrassed or offended, that's their problem. Hell, I'm taken for straight all the time, and I don't get pissy about it and run out looking for a lawyer!

But that doesn't explain how he knew his picture was on this site. Did the person hitting on him actually tell him that he saw his picture on Outsports and automatically assumed he was gay?

Someone who he'd been offensively hit on by, is having a casual conversation about where he saw him?

Any lawyer who'd take a case this frivolous on contingency has either a faulty logic chip or an ax to grind.

Then again, maybe it's on retainer rather than contingency. In which case I really don't feel sorry for the client (\"I know you can't win, but I'll pay you anyway\" -- it happens, especially in libel cases).

Of course he knew ... he saw the camera, right? And didn't he sign a release too? (And if he says he didn't know what he was signing, that's never an excuse.)

This whole case looks more inane by the day. :mad:

I know this is being moderated to exclude certain comments about the plantiff in this case but the true sleazeball here is his lawyer.

Any attorney who's been to law school for a week knows this is a case without merit. Yet he accepted it and went forward with it.

Yeah, I Googled the lawyer, Aaron Hemmings. He's listed as an associate at Browne, Flebotte, Wilson & Horn, PLLC, in Durham. No other mention anywhere on the Web. I guess that means he's new at it.

I for one am hoping the case gets dismissed.

We're all hoping it gets dismissed. Logically, it would be. But who knows what will be in the heart and mind of the judge?

He probably just did a Google search for the race he was in, and this was one of the sites that came up.

Gay By Proxy makes me think she could be Wonkette's new assistant!

There's still more to the internet than what Google indexes. According to Martindale.com he was admitted to the NC Bar in 1999 after doing his undergrad at West Virginia University and law school at the University of Dayton.

Hopefully in a few years we'll all look back on this and realize how great winning this lawsuit was and all the additional publicity generated for Outsports.

With the amount of stress this is causing Jim and Cyd - first with finding a good lawyer(s) within the 30 days they had to respond to the initial complaint, sweating about the legal fees and trying to raise the money to pay for the fees, I think it's safe to say if given the choice between a lawsuit (with the additional publicity, and hopefully great legal decision) and no lawsuit (and keeping the status quo) - Jim and Cyd today would choose no lawsuit.

But they don't quite get it, judging from this one quote: "Granted, Outsports should have asked before snapping Harbinson's mug and posting it all over the web." Oh, really? Is a credentialed photographer at a publicly held event supposed to ask permission from EVERYONE before taking a photograph of them? Are you supposed to run out onto the field when a fly ball is hit to left field and say "Mr. Burrell, may I take a picture of you catching the ball?" Give me a break.

I was glad to read this in that article, describing Wake County: FWIW, when I saw the picture of the guy, I just assumed he was a handsome straight guy in the marathon. If he was gay, Outsports would have said that in a caption (unless it was a picture from a gay/lesbian event).

Someone had to say it besides his lawyer: Chris Harbison Is Not Gay

[quote]willyboy:
[quote]I was glad to read this in that article, describing Wake County: [QUOTE]As if Wake County is some homophobic backwater. Home to John Edwards, North Carolina State University, and The Independent, Wake is actually a thriving liberal, not to mention gay and lesbian, community. [sic - maybe she meant \"has a gay and lesbian community\"] ...
If he keeps it up, he's in for a lengthy battle in a well-educated, no-fuss, get-along Southern town unsympathetic to blatant homophobia. [/quote]FWIW, when I saw the picture of the guy, I just assumed he was a handsome straight guy in the marathon. If he was gay, Outsports would have said that in a caption (unless it was a picture from a gay/lesbian event). [/quote]Keep in mind that Raleigh is also the hometown of Jesse Helms.

Yes, Raleigh may have been the home of Jesse Helms, but it is the metro area that leans liberal in NC (Charlotte and the Triad lean conservative), probably because it has the most northern transplants. I just moved over to Raleigh from Greensboro and while I don't consider it (Wake County) a "homophobic backwater" it's not overtly welcoming either...the only place that might qualify for that is nearby Orange County, home to Chapel Hill and Carrboro (the town with an openly gay mayor). With the move and all, I hadn't visited in a while, so I was actually surprised to read this stuff yesterday. I read the news every day and hadn't picked up on the story...I kind of doubt that many in the Triangle are even aware of this yet.

I believe this is from a credentialed photographer of a participant in a sporting event before they participate: Look At My Bling Bling & Tatt's On My Bikini Line!

Yeah, they're liberal all right: a radio station in Raleigh, N.C. is having a "Heterosexual Pride Parade" on Saturady August 28th.

Is the plaintiff in this case the parade's grand marshal? Hmmmm....click on the link and find a Clear Channel logo.

And the blog entry includes a link to the legal defense page. :cool:

"Outsports said it removed the picture of Harbinson from its Web site in mid-April, after being served with an order by Hemmings."

A. Why remove the picture then!?

If nothing wrong was done?

B. Have we actually had the courtesy of viewing the complaint?


?Censorship?


wink

[ August 27, 2004, 01:22 PM: Message edited by: IronJohn ]

Cyd and Jim can confirm this, but I understand pictures are removed whenever someone asks to have a picture removed as a common courtesy, not for any legal reason.