America loves a comeback story, his career is not over.
Considering the vast majority of Americans had no idea who this guy was before this incident, I don't see him ever shedding this scarlet letter. This is particularly disappointing because it simultaneously stokes racial animosity while making it harder for real victims to be believed. You really think he can survive this?
LOL.
Your first sentence is a real two America's perspective. To millions of Americans Smollet is just as recognizable as Will Arnett and Jason Sudekis (I literally had to look these dudes names up, recognize their faces, forgot their names).
Your second sentence should be put on a poster for white fragility. White people have been blaming black men for crimes they didn't commit literally every day since emancipation. We wanna take bets on how many of my people are locked up because some white person wanted to pin a crime on them that they didn't commit, how many lynched, executed by the government? When any of that happens do white people feel the need to blame them for stoking black distrust in the white power structure? GMAFB on "stoking racial animosity," anyone who uses this or any other false accusation didn't need this to fuel the animus. Black people are 12% of the population, it should be clear to all that we hold no keys in controlling what white people think about race relations.
I know you don't condone his actions, if indeed the allegations of a hoax are proven to be true. But thanks for reminding me we have an ugly history of prejudice in this country, and in too many cases unrelated to this instance, that pattern continues today. If you want to make this about that, then I'm outtie. If unrelated to this case, you want to point out other instances of black people being unfairly victimized by the justice system, then I'll gladly stand beside you and voice my strong disapproval. Have a great day.
What I want is for people to stop making this about anything but one dude and an elaborate lie. I don't want white people using these highly publicized hoaxes as a crutch for improved race relations. The boy who cried wolf talking point is 100% unacceptable, I'll hear it from the dax's, ksuw's, and the 27's of this world, but well meaning liberals and moderates should be metaphorically smacked every time they do it.
That's fair.
But if we shouldn't give this episode any significance broader than the individual actors in this case, would that have been the case if Smollet was actually attacked by MAGA guys?
In other words, let's say that two guys did attack Smollet and shout "this is MAGA country" and the events unfolded like Smollet actually reported. Would you give credence to a trump supporter who said "wait a second, these highly publicized instances of violence shouldn't be given any significance beyond the individuals involved. They aren't evidence of my intentions, the intentions of the president, or the intentions of those that support the president."
I could go either way on it, but I think we should probably be consistent. Either we attach broader significance to these actions, or we limit the significance to the actors involved.
I don't think it's ok to paint with a broad brush like that, but I think you can definitely point to the motivators or a lack thereof in each case. Alex Jones, Rush Limbaugh, Trump and Fox News are absolutely tapping into something dark and evil. I don't see any liberals or democrats advocating for staging hate crimes.
OK, but even if what you're saying is true, why should this episode serve as evidence of some broader illness in one example, but not the other? If it actually happened, the emphasis isn't limited to the individual actors, but rather, it's Fox, it's Trump, it's Alex, it's Rush, it's "The Right." But if it's an elaborate hoax, it's Jussie Smollet. Full stop.
Is your explanation that you think The Right actually
is stoking racial animosity and the left is not, and Jussie Smollet is some deviant outlier rather than the symptom of anything broader?