Rob Thomas’ cruel racist joke attacked Australian Aborigines yet he claims he cried in hotel room after worldwide criticism. In a long epistle on his Facebook page posted early Sunday, February 21, the 44-year old Matchbox 20 lead singer made an attempt soothe the anger of his fans. Thomas’s post appealed for forgiveness on the basis that it was simply a joke and not at all about race.
When faced with the realization of the impact his insensitive remarks have had, Thomas claims he sat and cried in his hotel room. Were the tears as a consequence of deep shame or as a reaction to the impact his comments have had on his reputation within a few hours?
TMZ posted a clip when the callous comments were made during Rob Thomas’ “The Great Unknown” concert at the Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne on Saturday, February 20. While a technical glitch was being corrected, Thomas had a chance to be reflective and interactive with the audience.
Instead, the pop star chose this quiet moment to make these comments – “I keep drinking until I think I’m Australian. And then I keep drinking until I think I’m a black Australian”. This last comment was met with immediate and long boos from the crowd.
Claiming ignorance of the social and racial issues that affect Australian Aborigines, particularly as it relates to the existing stereotypes surrounding drinking and Aborigines, Thomas holds that the words were said with “…no malice even in jest”.
So what was Rob Thomas really thinking? To make those callous comments at any point in a performance is beyond distasteful for the mere hateful nature of the remarks. Thomas’ comments are made all the more intolerable because they came at that moment during the concert void of the usual hype and adrenaline of performing.
So, on what level were those words supposed to be joke Rob? An international artiste of his caliber, who draws on a 20-year record of supporting civil rights, should really have known better. With a career spanning all these years as Matchbox 20 lead singer and then as a solo artiste, a career that was filled with numerous performances across Australia, Thomas still holds that he was oblivious of any existing racial issues.
As recently as November 2015, The Age Victoria News reported that there remains systematic racial discrimination of Australian Aborigines yet after years of similar reports, Rob Thomas claims blissful ignorance.
To many his apology comes as a pathetic attempt to repair a reputation tarnished by these bigoted comments. One fan on Twitter made an apt comment of the situation by writing “…I bet he’d never ‘joke’ similar re: Native Americans #noexcuse…”.