Shaquille O’Neal Facebook Post About Bathroom Etiquette Spurs Homophobic Posts

Shaquille O’Neal posted an image on Facebook about bathroom etiquette that is spurring charges of homophobia against the NBA legend.

On Wednesday, Shaq posted to Facebook a cartoon about the proper way to pee at a urinal. In the drawing, one man uses the urinal directly next to another man despite an entire row being open.

“This is an automatic fight in my book…….LMFAO,” Shaquille O’Neal wrote.

The comment may have seemed innocent, The Huffington Post noted, but it led to a thread filled with anti-gay statements, calling the cartoon man gay for his choice of urinal and the way he is depicted as walking.

“He shouldnt have wandered into a gay bar,” wrote one Facebook user.

“That definitely makes him gay!!!” wrote another.

Other respondents said they were disgusted by the display and angry at Shaquille O’Neal for starting the homophobic conversation.

It wasn’t clear what intention Shaquille O’Neal had in making the Facebook post — which was unavailable by Friday morning — but in the past he has supported anti-bullying and LGBT campaigns.

In 2011, Shaquille O’Neal teamed up with the NBA and American Federation of Teachers for a public service announcement against bullying, with a focus on those bullied for their sexual orientation.

From GLAAD:

“Millions of gay and transgender youth are made to feel like they don’t fit in every day,” says O’Neal in the new spots, set to air nationally. “No matter who you are, you have the power to make a difference.” The PSA concludes with Shaq directing viewers to GLAAD’s website, where anti-bullying resource kits are offered for students, parents and teachers.

Do you think Shaquille O’Neal was being intentionally homophobic in his Facebook post?