Kurt Busiek Defends Lee Weeks After Twitter Users Try Target Him For Support of Red Rooster

By 
·July 30, 2018

Comic Book creator Kurt Busiek stood strong against a number of Twitter users who took a play out of Kieran Shiach and Tim Doyle’s playbook to target Batman artist Lee Weeks after his support of Mitch Breitweiser, Mark Pellegrini, and Elizabeth Breitweiser’s Red Rooster IndieGoGo campaign.

Weeks Tweeted out the IndieGoGo campaign earlier this month.

Weeks also saw his work colored by Elizabeth Breitweiser in the most recent Batman issues written by Tom King.

The whole thing started when Twitter user Dief88 targeted Batman writer Tom King and DC Comics Publisher Jim Lee and asked for them to take a public stand against ComicsGate and its supporters against what he claims is “hate speech and discrimination.” He then referred them to Gerry Conway, Greg Rucka, and Kurt Busiek to help them with their public denouncement.

It’s still a little unclear how Lee Week’s name got involved, but Busiek came to his defense saying “Since I got tagged in this, I’ll say that “how it’s done,” as far as I’m concerned, isn’t by trying to chase Lee Weeks out of the industry because you think he likes someone you think is a bully. I like Lee Weeks. I’d work with him in a heartbeat.”

Busiek would add:

That did not deter Dief88. He claims that by Lee Weeks tweeting out his support of Red Rooster and the fact that he follows Diversity & Comics on Twitter means he “support[s] bigots.”

Another Twitter user Coolranch4lyfe would make it crystal clear why Weeks was targeted pointing out he promoted Red Rooster, follows Diversity & Comics, and follows a number of right leaning pundits including Ben Shapiro, Dana Loesch, and Tucker Carlson. He also follows psychiatrist Jordan Peterson.

They would also disagree with Busiek’s original defense of Lee Weeks.

However, Busiek would double down and defend Weeks.

While Busiek would refer to Diversity & Comics’ Richard Meyer as a “bigot,” he would defend Weeks again.

And if it wasn’t clear already, Busiek would do it one more time.

Busiek would elaborate on his defense.

When the rhetoric escalated and one user began to throw the term “Nazi” around, Busiek once again stood strong.

He would make the defense once more.

While I certainly disagree with Busiek’s position on ComicsGate and his labeling of Diversity & Comics, I have to applaud him for standing strong when a number of Twitter users began to pile on him and demand he throw Lee Weeks to the dogs merely because of who he follows on Twitter and his support of Mitch and Elizabeth Breitweiser’s Red Rooster IndieGoGo project.

Lee Weeks should not be run out of the comics industry for who he follows or his support for an independent comics project. In fact, he should not be run out of the industry for his political beliefs whatever they may be.

Good on Kurt Busiek for defending Lee Weeks.

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