CNN anchor Don Lemon took a swipe at
President Donald Trump in accepting the Davidson/Valentini Award
during Saturday's GLAAD 2017 Gala in San Francisco.
The 51-year-old Lemon, who came out gay
in his 2011 memoir Transparent, was presented with the award
by fellow CNN commentator Van Jones.
“I have been a gay black man all my
life,” Lemon said in starting his acceptance speech. “And so, I
ain't scared of nobody.”
In recalling how far the LGBT rights
movement has come, Lemon took a swipe at Trump without mentioning the
president by name.
“I remember when there was no Will,
there was no Grace, there was no Jack, there was no Karen on
television,” he said. “I remember when people didn't cover gay
pride events and GLAAD events. When those events barely got media
coverage. And when they covered them, they covered the most extreme
parts of our culture.”
“That's why it is important to stand
up [against] subtle and blatant homophobia. To fight for our trans
brothers and sisters – their very lives depend on it. They too
have served and are serving our country proudly and with
distinction.”
“We have to be the voice of my
immigrant brothers and sisters, especially the young ones who know no
other home than America. We have to point out outright bigotry and
racism. And as a man of color, I know it when I see it. I can smell
it coming.”
“And to make sure that some
uninformed people don't get confused that there are no fine or good
Nazis or white supremacists anywhere. And it's not about both sides.
That's where we are right now,” he
added.