Jamie Foxx, the once upon a time Oscar-winning actor, ripped his fan bloc a new one during a Saturday Night Live monologue that was laced with racist rhetoric. The actor ended each and every sentence with “how black is that?”, but it was the remarks about his upcoming movie, Django Unchained, that sent shivers down the spine of the most hardened television producers.
In the critically acclaimed film, directed by Quentin Tarantino, Foxx plays a slave that kills all of the white guys in the movie. During his monologue on SNL, Foxx crossed the line when he spoke about “killing all the white people”. Instead of ending that sentence with “how black is that?” he ended it with, “How great is that?” This not only caused a massive outpouring of criticism from Foxx’s fans, but also resulted in many SNL fans boycotting the famous weekly comedy show.
The comments left on NBC’s website after the airing showed the true disgust and anger of fans. One inflamed commenter said, “How could you allow the racist ranting of Jamie Foxx? He killed all the white guys in the movie – it was great?? It was the black thing to do? It was disgusting. It was shocking. It was un-American.” Another irate commenter said on Have U Heard’s website: “I’m black and this was just plain tasteless. Why are beyonce, kanye west, jamie foxx and plenty of other african american celebs so focused on race? I do not see whites making similar remarks on tv… HE Jamie you stink! (sic)”
SNL is no stranger to controversy. On the 3rd of October, 1992, Irish singer Sinead O’Connor ripped up an image of then Pope John Paul II, after singing an a cappella version of Bob Marley’s “War”. The resultant fallout from this incident caused a massive uproar all over the world. NBC has since banned the video from ever being re-aired on national television.
Do you think Foxx overreacted? Was Foxx trying to generate buzz for the movie? Do you think it was in bad taste to say that killing White people is great, joking or not? Do you think there would be public outrage, boycotts, political statements, and speeches if a White entertainer celebrated killing Black people as a joke on TV? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
Check out Foxx’s Racist Rant Here
Editor’s Note: Now I’ll really have think twice about hiring Foxx to perform at my Bar Mitzvah.
