A T-shirt poking fun at a small South Island town's attitude to gay people is available online from today – but only for 24 hours. Made by Mr. Vintage, a popular limited edition T-shirt website, the shirt shows two men enjoying a picnic under a tree and the words 'GORE – ITS NOT THAT GAY'. The website tells the story of TV's Mikey Havoc and Jeremy Wells' joke over 'Gay Gore', which they started on their show back in 1999. "Gore was labelled the 'Gay capital of New Zealand' by some dudes with a sense of humour," the T-Shirt's description on the website begins. "The people of Gore were quick to react, and recently statistics showed Gore as one of the least Homosexual towns in New Zealand. Their Mayor has been very diplomatic in stating how 'inclusive and accepting' Gore is towards Homosexuals, but it appears that his declaration is not widely shared by the Gore public. "A local Wedding celebrant even admitted “Homosexuals are frowned upon" in Gore, and more recently, one of those who ushered in the 'Gay Gore' jibe (Jeremy Wells) was harassed by some residents of Gore, and labelled a 'f**king homo' for his troubles." The website concludes: "Come on Gore, get with the times – There's nothing wrong with being Gay." The T-shirt is available in men's and women's styles, but only today (16 December 2008). Their listing on the Mr. Vintage website is linked below.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News Staff
First published: Tuesday, 16th December 2008 - 8:29pm