Does a same-sex rape make The Kite Runner gay? Tom O'Neil explains why he thinks it does.

Los Angeles Times blogger Tom O'Neil recently posted on his blog The Gold Derby about GLAAD's nominations being "bizarre" for not being gay enough. As proof he cited the fact that GLAAD hadn't nominated The Kite Runner. Said O'Neil:

One great film with a gay subtext got overlooked by other awards this derby season and deserved to be noted here, but wasn't: "The Kite Runner," which contains a controversial boy-rape scene. Why did GLAAD wimp out?

For those not familiar with either the book or the movie, The Kite Runner tells the story of two boys (pictured above) growing up in Kabul, Afghanistan, the wealthy Amir and his friend Hassan, the son of his father's servant. When Hassan is raped by Assef, (a teenage boy who grows up to be a pedophile), Amir does nothing to help him and, in fact, later commits a horrible act of betrayal against his friend.

First let me say I haven't seen the film adaptation of the The Kite Runner, but I did read the book from which it was adapted and I have talked to some folks who have seen the movie. Now let me say I was completely baffled by O'Neil's comments as were most of the folks who posted responses on his blog. When I read The Kite Runner it never occurred to me that there was anything the least gay about it. Curious to see if O'Neil, after having read those comments, had changed his mind, I dropped him an email asking just that. Here is our exchange:

Hi Tom,

My name is Michael Jensen and I'm the editor of AfterElton.com, part of MTV's Logo network. We cover popular culture for gay and bisexual men. I've followed your blog for quite some, especially ever since Brokeback Mountain. I'm writing now to ask about your recent comments regarding GLAAD's having overlooked The Kite Runner for a nomination which I'm writing about for my weekly column. I'm wondering if upon consideration, you understand why GLAAD wouldn't have nominated this movie? If not, I was wondering if you could elaborate on why you believe a scene involving the rape of a young boy falls under the heading of homosexuality rather than pedophilia which are two different things.

Thanks, Michael
Editor, AfterElton.com

Tom responded with:

Hi Michael,

I'm not saying that the gay rape scene in "Kite Runner" is a positive reflection of gay culture. I'm saying that 'Kite Runner' is the best-made, quality movie of 2007 that has gay content and it deserves recognition by GLAAD because of its core message. This is the story of a man, Amir, who seeks redemption because he spurned his childhood friend, Hassan, because Hassan was the victim of a gay rape. That's what the plot of "Kite Runner" turns on -- one boy being so disgusted by his friend being raped that he turns Hassan into a victim again, setting him up for a bogus crime, then spurns him, leading to even further tragedy while the political world around them collapses. Late in life, Amir not only realizes how terrible his acts were, he struggles desperately to atone, even risking his life. The whole message of this movie is a man atoning for the terrible things he did in response to a gay rape.

Yeah, I think a message like that is pretty powerful, very positive and, since it appears in one of the best films of the year -- far better than any movie GLAAD has on its nomination list -- should've been acknowledged by an organization whose reason for existence is to promote messages like we see in "Kite Runner." Instead, GLAAD preferred something like a safe, puffy turn in "Across the Universe." Yeah, I have a problem with that.

Best regards,

Tom O'Neil
TheEnvelope.com

Still puzzled, I wrote back again.

Hi Tom,

Thanks for getting back to me with your answer. I have to confess to still being a little puzzled about your POV. Again, how is The Kite Runner any reflection of gay culture when none of the people involved are gay and the only sex is rape and pedophilia? It seems the only argument to be made for gay content is that Assef is somehow gay, but it seems to me he is nothing but a sexual sadist and a pedophile as he grows up to abuse boys.

To say that The Kite Runner has gay content because of a same-sex rape seems to confuse the issue at best. Would you assert that a movie about a girl being raped by her uncle has heterosexual content? On a purely technical level, yes, it involves a male and female, but it seems to me few folks would describe that as heterosexual.

It would be different if Hassan turned out to be gay, but he's not. The rape is about power, not sex and certainly not about sexual orientation, but sexual humiliation. Asking gay people to accept that as "gay content" seems, I hate to say it, insensitive. Do you understand where gay folks are coming from on this?

Also, I'd have to say I disagree about Amir's motivation which has less to do with his spurning his friend for being raped (leaving the gay out of it) as opposed to his shame at doing nothing to help his friend and everything that followed.

Thanks, Michael
Editor, AfterElton.com

Tom's response:

Hi Michael,

Amir reacts the way he does because the rape is a gay act -- not because it's a power trip -- and he's so disgusted and ashamed of his friend that he makes the wrong decisions that result in tragedy, then he does his best to atone.

Sometimes stories don't have to be all about gay characters, but rather how people respond to gay sex -- their repulsion so extreme that they do horrific things. If Amir's kite-flying pal had been a girl, who was then raped, he would not have responded the way he did and this story would've had a very different end.

The story plays out the way it does because of gay defamation. That's why GLAAD exists -- to battle that. Doesn't this movie -- better than any other released in 2007 -- deliver that message? Doesn't GLAAD have an obligation to that acknowledge that in its awards? Frankly, I think GLAAD's gone so mainstream lately and so kissy-kissy to the str8 world that it doesn't have the guts to upset them with this film that bravely depicts how other str8 people ruin lives when they respond inappropriately to gay rape.

Tom O'Neil
TheEnvelope.com

I wrote back a final time to thank him for taking the time to respond.

After our exchange, I felt better that O'Neil wasn't confusing same-sex rape with homosexuality per se. But I do feel he could've done a much better job of explaining his point about the Amir's reaction being driven by homophobia in his original post. However, I also believe he fundamentally misreads Amir's motivation in how he treats his friend. No doubt, Amir wasn't thrilled to see Hassan anally raped, but Amir already had issues with Hassan being his father's favorite as well as being much more brave and even noble than Amir. So I read his rejection of Hassan being caused by that as opposed to the rape.

Did anyone else who saw the movie or read the book agree with O'Neil?