Here at BUST, we’ve been following the story of Georgetown Law student Sandra Fluke and the fight for affordable contraception pretty well. We’ve also followed the aftermath, which notably involved radio host and creep extraordinaire Rush Limbaugh verbally abusing Fluke, calling her a “prostitute,” and demonstrating his general lack of understanding of the way birth control and contraception work (explained brilliantly by the fabulous Rachel Maddow).
The backlash to Limbaugh was immediate and strong; social media campaigns were launched condemning him and pressuring advertisers to withdraw from his show, and Fluke even received a supportive phone call from President Obama himself. President Obama addressed the issue again this morning, stating that he called Sandra Fluke with his daughters in mind, and that he wants them “to be able to speak their mind in a civil and thoughtful way” and doesn’t want them to be “attacked…because they’re being good citizens.”
Many advertisers have decided to pull their ads from Limbaugh’s show and release statements condemning his comments (you can check out who decided not to pull their advertising here).
Limbaugh, for the first time in the history of his show, has apologized for his offensive words. Well…sort of. Not really.
On Saturday, he issued a written apology on his website, stating that he “did not mean a personal attack on Ms. Fluke” and that his “insulting word choice” was an “attempt to be humorous.” He reiterated on his radio show that he was sorry for the “two words” he called Fluke (“slut” and “prostitute”) and he did not think that she was “either of those two words.” Well then, Rush, it’s all settled! The only thing that was wrong with your attack on Sandra Fluke was your word choice!
There are some people in the media – Faux News, for example – who think that since Limbaugh has “apologized,” we should forgive him and move on. Personally, I think that’s a load of BS. Beyond the fact that that was one of the most pathetic excuses for an apology that I’ve seen (and one of the most misogynistic and offensive attacks ever), Limbaugh has a history of saying a whole slew of heinous crap – horrible racist and sexist nonsense – that he has never apologized for.
How do you all feel about this, BUSTies? Should we just put the issue to rest or pursue it?
(Photo via rushlimbaugh.com)
