Essay 818

Setting the record straight, literally and figuratively, in a MultiCultClassics Monologue…

• Oprah Winfrey and long-time pal Gayle King are not gay (pictured above), according to remarks published in the August issue of O magazine. “I understand why people think we are gay,” said Oprah. “There isn’t a definition in our culture for this kind of bond between women. … People think I’d be so ashamed of being gay that I wouldn’t admit it? Oh, please.” Great, now Oprah thinks her relationships are beyond society’s comprehension.

• The Minutemen in Illinois have zero official opinions on immigration. The state’s tow-truck workers have used the name for over 40 years, and despite confusion with the anti-immigration Illinois Minuteman Project, the drivers plan to keep their title. “Upon consideration we are not going to go in that direction [of changing the name],” said a spokesperson for the Illinois Department of Transportation. “We feel very confident that the motoring public understands that the Minutemen are there to help them when their car breaks down — regardless of what they look like or where they come from.” Great, that should calm any concerns from Hispanic drivers in Illinois.

• Sophia Danenberg became the first African American — plus, the first Black woman from anywhere — to climb atop Mount Everest (pictured below). Yet Oprah’s insistence that she’s not gay received a lot more press than Danenberg’s breakthrough feat. Don’t let the news pass you by. Click on the essay title above to read about Danenberg’s history-making achievement.