Will Smith and The Infamous Oscars Slap

    

    It has been two about almost three weeks since rapper/actor Will Smith also known as The Fresh Prince slapped comedian/actor Chris Rock at the Academy Awards. Will Smith was nominated for Best Actor in the biopic film King Richard. The film King Richard told the story of tennis legends Venus and Serena Williams and how their father Richard Williams taught them how to transform into tennis stars. 

What happened? Why did Will slap Chris?

Chris Rock made a joke referencing the film G.I. and compared Jada Pinkett Smith's hair cut the look worn by Demi Moore in the fim. Jada was not pleased with the joke and her husband Will Smith initially laughed out of discomfort. But he looked over and saw how offended his wife and slapped Chris Rock in the face. Once he returned to his seat he said repeatedly "Keep my wife's name out your fucking mouth!" Chris Rock then responded by saying " I will."

It was just a joke? On the surface level yes it was a joke. However, it was clear Jada Pinkett Smith was not amused. Many people have stated Will Smith himself was laughing. Many people do not know that Will Smith laughs when he gets nervous. He has stated this in recent interviews. 

Toni's Thoughts: In a perfect world Will would not or should not have hit Chris. The reason is as adults we usually do not put hands on people just because they say something we do not like. However, I also believe Will had a human moment. He had a lapse of judgement for personal reasons. I noticed on social media many men and women suggested that Jada was not worthy of Will defending her because of how she has humiliated him in recent years through The Red Table Talk and her sexual affair with singer August Alsina. I do not condone Jada's recent actions of words because it is disrespectful to Will and their family as a whole. However, in that moment he defended his wife in the manner he saw fit. This is not the first time Chris Rock has taken personal jabs at Jada or The Smith Family. For some reason that is not being brought up in mainstream media outlets. The only person that should be upset about the slap is Chris Rock himself and his family. Hopefully they can resolve everything. But I am going to join the bandwagon to demonize Will Smith. For many years he has always been seen as "The Nice Guy" he has been a joke punching bag for a long time. Many people are calling Will a "cuck" and a "simp" for staying with Jada. My thing is if he has decided to stay with her, forgive her, etc then we must respect that and leave it be even if we disagree. For me the biggest issue I have with the situation is the hypocrisy in Hollywood from non Black actors and Black actors. The responses have shown me many people were waiting on a chance to brand Will Smith with a Scarlet Letter due to their hidden jealousy. Right now Chris Rock's stand up tour ticket prices have gone up. Will is being black listed right now. However, I do not believe he suffers financially because he is a very smart man and I agree with Whoopi Goldberg stating that he can bounce back. I enjoy comedy and free speech. However, I am concerned when Black comedians tell jokes at the expense of another Black person especially in front of non Black people.

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