A SYTYCD First

Although So You Think You Can Dance has featured two guys dancing together on the show in the past, it has usually been something like hip-hop. However, on the 5th season's debut Thursday night Misha Belfer (gay) and Mitchel Kibel (straight) auditioned with a Samba routine.


All three judges seemed more concerned about the fact that two guys were dancing together than the actual dancing causing some to feel the comments were homophobic. Nigel Lythgoe, the creator/producer/judge on the show, stands by his comments.

Though I felt some of the comments were unnecessary, the pair did fall on their asses when attempting a lift and were given the chance to try the choreography portion to prove themselves. Ultimately, they didn't advance to Vegas.

I'm kind of torn about the issue. On one hand playing "It's Raining Men" during their introduction clip and other attempts to poke fun at the pair could be seen as offensive, just because a person doesn't advance doesn't mean it's because they're gay.

Like when Adam Lambert didn't win American Idol the other night, everyone said it was because he was gay. And now, people like Perez Hilton are writing about the SYTYCD incident saying it's because one of the guys was gay. While I didn't watch AI so I can't speak on that, the dance pair weren't that great and FELL during their routine.

Yes, there is still a lot of homophobia in this country -- but every time a person of the GBLTQ community doesn't make it all the way, doesn't always mean it's because of that sole reason. I'm tired of people using that as an excuse.