It is amazing how easily we fall for misleading and even false information these days, including myself. It has been several days since Jussie Smollett was arrested for allegedly staging a homophobic and racist attack and since then, enough information has come out for me to want to respond.
Shortly after hearing of the “attack” of Smollett, I took to social media and talked about how horrific the attack was. I talked about how racist and homophobic attacks seems to be getting worse since President Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) slogan took to the national stage, and how something needed to change to reduce this alarming rise in violence. I stand by my statements, but I do regret allowing my reaction dictate how I spoke about the issue. Based off the reactions a lot of other people had at that same time, I would say there’s lots of rethinking at this point.
I have so many things to say about this, but the words doesn’t seem to want to come out. All I can think of is that Smollett used his platform as an advocate for gay and black rights, to further his own agenda. He represents two groups who are truly beaten, ridiculed and killed every day for who they are, and because of his actions, those who identify like him will be taken less seriously when they come forward with allegations of criminal actions.
Since the revelations came out about what really did happen, several people have reached out to me, wondering why it was so easy to show my support for Smollett, and how hard it was to condemn him. I had every intention on addressing how wrong it was what he did. However, because of the previous mistake I make, rushing to judgement and reacting off of that, I decided to wait, see where the evidence took the story, and then respond. I do not, however, plan on removing the post, because I believe it is important for America to remember the mistake we made in trusting this man, and start a discussion about why it is important to report only REAL crimes.
Do you have something you want to add to the discussion? Make sure you post your thoughts in the comments below, or in the original Instagram post.