Tracy Morgan Meets with Homeless LGBT Youth

Following his homophobic tirade earlier this month, comedian Tracy Morgan met with homeless LGBT youth and their advocates in an Ali Forney Center apartment in Brooklyn, N.Y., on Friday, June 17.

Ali Forney Center clients Raciel Castillo and Jayden Love met with Morgan alongside GLAAD staffer Sharda Sekaran and Elke Kennedy, whose 20-year-old son Sean was killed in an anti-gay attack in South Carolina in 2007. Carl Siciliano, executive director of the Ali Forney Center, Jim Parker from Sean's Last Wish and Morgan's fianc�e also attended the meeting.

Castillo told EDGE that Morgan repeatedly apologized.

"He's aware of what he did and that's great," he said.

Kennedy and Siciliano added that Morgan was crying when he left. "[They were] real tears," described Kennedy.

Morgan, who co-stars on NBC's "30 Rock" alongside Tina Fey, sparked widespread outrage after he told a Nashville, Tenn., audience on June 3 that he would stab his own son to death if he came out to him as gay. Fey described the comedian's comments as "disturbing to me at a time with homophobic hate crimes continue to be a life-threatening issue for the GLBT community." NBC Entertainment Chair Robert Greenblatt also spoke out against Morgan's comments.

"Tracy's comments reflect negatively on both '30 Rock' and NBC-two very all-inclusive and diverse organizations," said Greenblatt. "We have made it clear to him that this kind of behavior will not be tolerated."

Morgan told those who attended the meeting that he plans to return to Tennessee on Tuesday, June 21, to apologize to those he offended. GLAAD further announced that Morgan will also meet with local LGBT activists and participate in an upcoming public service announcement alongside the Rev. Al Sharpton, Russell Simmons, Amy Poehler, Bono and others.

"Today, Tracy saw firsthand the toll that homophobia and anti-gay violence can take on a person's life," said GLAAD President Jarrett Barrios in a statement after the Brooklyn meeting. "By meeting with LGBT teens left homeless because of who they are, we hope that Tracy has come to understand that so-called 'jokes' about gay youth are not just irresponsible, they are damaging."

Those who attended the meeting insist that Morgan is sincerely sorry for his tirade. Castillo added the comedian said he hopes to use his celebrity to send a more positive message.

"I want to see where he takes that," he said. "It's not going to be swept under the rug."