i’m gonna font a controversial hot take.
so over the weekend,
john davidson,
a guest with tourette’s who inspired “i swear,”
shouted the N-word during a BAFTAs segment featuring michael b. jordan and delroy lindo.
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and 110%…
i don’t care WHAT tourettes he had,
that word was floating around in his mind.
i saw something where he allegedly said 3 slurs directed to black folks that night too.
i refuse to believe that was a coincidence and we need to give him grace.
please!
NOT ONLY THAT…
he allegedly refuses to apologize..
AND NOT ONLY THAT…
why didn’t the BBC edit the slur when the show was delayed?
and why didn’t they apologize directly to mjb and delroy?
…along with the host,
alan cumming,
not sending the apology their way as well?
in my head:
it seems like many people are upset with the movie,
“sinners”.
…and they will use tourettes or passive aggressive shit to express their frustrations bout it.
you can’t put anything past coincidence in this timeline.
lowkey: mjb and deloy did a master class in how to handle potential embarrassment on stage.
slap a smile on your face and continue the show.
you don’t let them see you sweat in public…
but they damn sure gonna feel it in private.
The problem here is that Tourette’s is not the issue; the issue is humanity, dignity, and what it means to live in what is supposed to be a civil society.
There are a couple of issues. This argument that people are making that somehow in some world disability prevents you from being a decent human being is wild. In this situation, there is no way around the fact that an apology was immediately owed to the people who were on the receiving end of the slur by all parties involved. I think people can have grace and understanding that if you have this tick, that maybe you can’t apologize in that moment, but you should definitely be issuing an apology within 24 hours of the incident. The other issue is this myth that having a disability somehow makes you next in line for sainthood; you can be disabled or have a disability and still be a horrible human being. There are people in this world who have Tourette’s, people who are blind, deaf, handicapped, on the spectrum, and who are also racist, sexist, misogynistic, homophobic, etc.
Another issue is this idea that everyone needs to be educated on disability, and somehow, white people are the only experts in the room. There are plenty of Black people who professionally work with people with disabilities, in addition to the fact that there are black people who suffer from these disabilities, including Tourette’s, and their families and social circles have to navigate what that means.
This is about anti-blackness and the need and investment people have in trying to invalidate the black experience and deny black people their humanity and dignity. The BBC made an editorial decision to leave that slur in a 2hr delayed broadcast while editing out other statements and slurs, for a lot of people; black people are not worthy or deserving of an apology, and it bothers them that they are being compelled to give one.
SHAMEFUL! That insult came from the HEART—NOT THE CONDITION!