Kim Burrell, the gospel singer from Houston, was supposed to be on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” on Thursday.
Fat chance after the singer gave an anti-gay sermon. DeGeneres, who came out as gay years ago, disinvited her. But it hasn’t stopped there.
“Now Burrell has lost her own talk show as well,” reports The Advocate. “Texas Southern University announced this week in a statement that ‘Bridging the Gap With Kim Burrell’ will be canceled. … A spokesperson for KTSU did not confirm or deny that the cancellation was in response to the homophobic sermon.
“In addition, a televised talk show on a local CW station, ‘Keep It Moving With Kim Burrell,’ which debuted in September, is no longer listed in the station’s lineup, the Houston Chronicle notes.”
To recap:
“She was doing a Facebook Live, and she said some very not nice things about homosexuals, so I didn’t feel that was good of me to have her on the show to give her a platform after she was saying things about me,” DeGeneres told Pharrell Williams on her show. “So we’ll let you talk about it.”
(Burrell had preached at Love & Liberty Fellowship Church: “That perverted homosexual spirit, and the spirit of delusion and confusion, it has deceived many men and women. You as a man, you open your mouth and take a man’s penis in your face — you are perverted. You are a woman and will shake your face in another woman’s breast, you are perverted.”)
Williams replied: “There’s no space, there’s no room for any kind of prejudice in 2017 and moving on. There’s no room. She’s a fantastic singer, I love her, just like I love everybody else and we all got to get used to that. We all have to get used to everyone’s differences and understand that this is a big, gigantic, beautiful, colorful world and it only works with inclusion and empathy. It only works that way.”
He also said: “We learned that lesson last year, that sometimes divisiveness works. But you have to choose what side you’re on. I’m choosing empathy. I’m choosing inclusion. I’m choosing love for everybody, just trying to lift everyone. Even when I disagree with someone I’m wishing them the best and hoping for the best because we can’t win the other way.”
For those asking, Kim Burrell will not be appearing on my show.
— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) January 3, 2017
Degeneres, who signaled her move Tuesday on Twitter, said: “To me, when I say, ‘Be kind to one another,’ I feel that. Because, as someone who has received a lot of hate and prejudice and discrimination because of who I choose to love, I just don’t understand anyone who has experienced that kind of oppression or anything like that, it only gives me more compassion. It gives me more empathy. I don’t ever want anyone to feel hurt because they are different.”
Fans of the gay comedian came out in support. Others wondered about censorship or failure to recognize the right to free speech.
I don’t want Ellen to hold Kim Burrell accountable on her show. The optics of a white woman “schooling” a Black woman on TV is problematic.
— Raquel Willis (@RaquelWillis_) December 31, 2016
The super irony of Kim Burrell’s statement is that she was gonna perform on the Ellen Degeneres Show.. a gay woman’s show lmao.
— ????? (@Cannabissskid) January 5, 2017
Today is the day that The Lord has made. And also the day Kim Burrell won’t be on Ellen. Rejoice and be glad in it.
— K a r i o. (@karrry_) January 5, 2017
The fact that people are upset with Ellen because they feel that Kim Burrell’s freedom of speech has been compromised KILLS ME!
— Todrick Hall (@todrick) January 4, 2017