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Snickers Super Bowl Homophobia Ensnares NFL
by Michael Jensen, February 6, 2007
There is no denying who the big winner was in Sunday's Super Bowl XLI victory when the Indianapolis Colts claimed the Lombardi trophy for themselves. What wasn't immediately apparent, however, is that the Chicago Bears weren't the only losers. During the game, a commercial for Snickers candy bar aired that showed two male mechanics in a garage accidentally kissing as they ate the same Snickers bar. Upon realizing what they've done, the two men leap apart, as one declares, “Quick! Do something manly!” The other mechanic then tears open his shirt, rips out a handful of chest hair, and begins to scream in pain. On one hand, the ad seems to indicate that kissing another man is less than “manly”. But it can also be argued the ad is mocking those who hold such beliefs. After all, you can't be too bright if you go around inflicting pain on yourself for accidentally kissing another man. The ad closes with a bit of text directing viewers to go to www.afterthekiss.com. On the site are three other versions of the ad for viewers to watch and then vote for as their favorite. The winner will be shown during the Daytona 500. Two of the other three ads are variations on the “chest hair” ad. In one, the two men prove they are manly by drinking motor oil. In the other, they inflict pain by getting hit with a large wrench or having the hood of the car slammed on their head. Some, including Jon Aravosis of Americablog.com, feel the “wrench” ad advocates violence against the LGBT community. Aravosis is currently calling for a boycott of Mars, Inc. Others simply find the ads mildly offensive or even amusing, arguing that the ad is a parody of homophobic attitudes. The fourth ad, The Love Boat, seems less ambiguously homophobic. In it, a third rather creepy man appears after the first two have kissed and, after flicking his long hair like a seductive woman, asks if there is room for a third on this “Love Boat.” The message here is a variation on the canard that gay men are prone to make sexual advances and are especially drawn to group sex. This is truly disturbing because, while the first two mechanics clearly aren't meant to be gay, this third effeminate, flamboyant man does want to kiss the other two and is meant to be gay. The website offers one final feature—an “extra”—where viewers can watch five different players view the commercials as they offer up their reactions. The five are Mushin Muhammad, Rex Grossman, and Desmond Clark of the Chicago Bears, and Cato June and Marvin Harrison of the Indianapolis Colts. Of the five players, Muhammad, Clark, and June react with varying degrees of blatant disgust. It is here that Mars Inc., the manufacturer of Snickers, seems to associate themselves with outright bigotry When Muhammad sees the two men accidentally kiss he gasps and says “Oh!” as he wrinkles his nose and grimaces with what can only be called revulsion. “Oh, my God!” he says while laughing. The rest of his commentary is punctuated with groans and looks of horror as he discusses what he is seeing. As Desmond Clark watches the ads he reacts with “Whoa! Whoa! Hold on. Before we go to the next one, did they actually have to kiss like that?” A voice off-screen tells him they had to do fifty takes to which Clark says, “You lying. I hope they got paid a lot of money to do that.” After watching The Love Boat ad, Clark says, “Come on, come on. Not two men doing this. Then all of a sudden you've go this third guy walking around and wanting to get some action too.” Clark then says it's the most shocking commercial of the Super Bowl. Colt's linebacker Cato June offers up a similar reaction as his colleagues saying, “What! Oh, they wild man! Oh, hell no! [laughing] I thought they were going to stop at some point, two men who brushed and catch each other. Two men—that's not right. Obviously, they wanted to go full throttle with that one. The Love Boat ending was probably the most entertaining for the simply fact of what are you looking at? What is that twinkle in your eye. Why are you that close to another man?” It's basically the behavior of boys in a high school lockerroom, but acted out by highly-paid and widely-emulated sports figures. The other two players, Grossman and Harrison, simply comment on the commercial without saying anything offensive. |
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