Darkside Rainbow

You all know I’m not a big fan of political correctness. (Or if you don’t, you haven’t been hanging around here long enough.) Sure, I believe in respecting others and not going out of your way to insult them without good cause, but I also believe in keeping a sense of humor and letting things roll off your back. I suppose I’m a bit of a middle-grounder in everything, from politics to behavior. I don’t really have much use for political correctness when it forces me to hedge and say things other than exactly what I mean, but at the same time I do know when to restrain myself for the sake of tact and courtesy.

So why am I rambling about my thoughts on political correctness? To set the stage for discussion of this:

‘DANCE LAWYER’ GAY FLAP - NYPost.com
SLAPS BACK AT ‘PHOBIC’ JUDGE

October 24, 2007 — A boisterously eccentric defense attorney yesterday accused a Bronx Supreme Court judge of being “homophobic” after the jurist told him to stop “dancing” around “in a flamboyant nature” in his courtroom.

“I know making reference to your, what appeared to be dancing as part of your cross-examination and your flamboyant nature as I addressed it, I hope it won’t happen again,” Justice Richard Lee Price told Robert Feldman. [...] “Just try to control yourself,”

The openly gay Feldman, 52, [...] said, “With all due respect, I mind your characterization of my nature of dancing around and being flamboyant as homophobic.”

The judge said, “If you think that I have done anything improper, you may certainly level a charge wherever it is appropriate . . . You’re certainly free to do that.”

Feldman said later he had no plans to file an official complaint against the judge.

“I give him the benefit of the doubt,” Feldman said. “I happen to think he’s actually a top-notch, top-drawer, intelligent judge . . . I don’t think he really meant to offend. But I do think it’s subconscious homophobia.”

Price, who is chairman of the court’s gender-fairness committee, said in a statement, “I do not know or care about Mr. Feldman’s sexual preference. His allegations are outrageous. My responsibility is to see that the jury is not distracted by his conduct.”

This is one of those situations where I can’t help but think they were both wrong, and at the same time, both right. The courtroom is a place for sobriety, and unless your less-than-decorous behavior serves to illustrate a point in your case, acting with less than the proper decorum can irritate and even offend a judge that you want on your side. I don’t know if Feldman acts “flamboyantly” in daily life and I don’t care. That’s his business, and his life.

I do know that when you go before the judge, you calm it down, period. That doesn’t just mean “acting straight”. It has nothing to do with sexuality at all. This applies in any case in which your natural form of expression involves anything other than a suit, tie, rigid shoulders, even tone, and quietly respectful behavior. If you normally have a mohawk and a nose ring, you comb that bastard down and take the ring out. If you’re covered in tattoos, cover them with something. If you’re normally prone to cursing every other word (…who, me?), you check yourself and filter every word that enters your mind before you say it. Judges have evicted lawyers, defendants, and plaintiffs from the courtroom for less. When the judge’s decision affects you, you don’t run the risk of alienating him or her. It may be too annoyingly conformist for your tastes, but it’s also smart. Sometimes you have to work with the system to get it to work for you.

At the same time, let’s say that Feldman is a naturally…we’ll say effete person. Let’s say he wasn’t acting in any way that was out of the ordinary for him, or in any way that was particularly offensive; just a little less than Marlboro Man masculine. It’s really hard to be sure from the context of the full article, as it’s presented in a rather biased slant. But in that case, was the judge wrong in calling Feldman out for his behavior? It’s quite possible the judge was personally offended by Feldman’s sexuality and let his personal feelings tint his perceptions of Feldman’s courtroom behavior, resulting in an unnecessary and unjust rebuke. If Feldman wasn’t going out of his way to “dance” and behave “flamboyantly”, as the article says, then the judge apparently just had a problem with the fact that not all of us are butcher than butch. There are some straight men who behave more flamboyantly than gay men, though. Would the judge have called a straight man out for the same behavior, knowing he was straight?

You can’t really know, can you? I do think Feldman’s accusations just exacerbated an issue that shouldn’t have been an issue to start with. Going so far as to accuse a judge of homophobia for demanding sober courtroom behavior was, in my eyes, a little too politically correct, and jumping the gun - but the judge jumped the gun as well, and wasn’t politically correct (or at least tactful) enough.

So in my eyes they were both wrong, and both right. Feldman should have done his best to maintain a proper air of respect in the courtroom, regardless of the basis for his behavior, but at the same time had the right to be offended by the judge’s commentary even if he probably shouldn’t have pulled the homophobia card so quickly. At the same time, the judge had the right to be annoyed if Feldman’s behavior was causing a distraction from the key points of the case, but should have found a more polite, tactful way to say so that didn’t involve any slurs on Feldman’s sexuality. In short, Feldman’s behavior was inappropriate, but so were the judge’s comments.

In the end, though, after spending several paragraphs considering this and seeking a final resolution, I can only roll my eyes and come to one conclusive thought:

Why is this news, and why did I just waste this much time on it?

justice richard lee price, robert feldman, courtroom behavior, gay lawyer, nicholas martin