Happy April, everyone! I simply wanted to provide my thoughts on a now-infamous moment from this year's Oscars ceremony:
For those who have been living under a rock for a week, actor/comedian Chris Rock poked fun at Jada Pinkett Smith's shaved head (a byproduct of the alopecia the latter has), jokingly calling her 'G.I. Jane'. Moments later, Jada's husband, Will Smith, marched up to where Rock was standing and slapped him, as pictured above, before returning to his seat. Rock subsequently tried to poke fun at what happened, light-heartedly declaring, "Will Smith just smacked the s**t out of me!" Smith wasn't finished, though, as he shouted for Rock to keep Jada's name "Out your F***ING mouth!" not once, but twice, with the second instance being much louder and angrier-sounding. Despite this, Smith would ultimately take home the Academy Award for Best Actor for his lead role in King Richard, though what would normally be a triumph for most actors would become sullied by what he'd just done prior.
I think it's safe to say Will Smith could've handled this a lot better than what we witnessed; for instance, he could've waited until after the Oscars ceremony finished and met with Chris Rock one-on-one to explain how the latter's attempt at humor was hurtful to Jada. Heck, if all Smith did was shout out (as described above) at Rock without the physical contact, I'm willing to bet this incident wouldn't be anywhere as talked about as it currently is. On the other hand, I can empathize with what motivated Smith to do what he did. Granted, he may have been chuckling at Rock's humor before seeing that Jada did not feel the same way about this ad-lib as Smith did, but if someone said something about, for instance, my little sister in an attempt at humor that was hurtful to her, I for one would make it very clear to said individual that their 'joke' was in poor taste (albeit with words). Not to mention, alopecia, while thankfully not deadly, is something many people could be insecure over (given the hair loss resulting from the condition); as such, Rock arguably went a bit 'further' (verbally) than necessary, even if it was for the sake of comedy. Now, I know some people might say that no one is safe when it comes to who comedy 'jabs' at, but at the same time, there should be some standards to prevent comedians from going too far!
While Will Smith should certainly be called out for his ill-advised conduct at the Oscars, I can't help but feel as though his behavior that night is being overplayed; after all, it's not like he did anything on the level of O.J. Simpson, for crying out loud! And, unlike someone like Kanye West, Smith hasn't exactly been a controversial figure up to this point (not counting the questionable decisions his kids have made that've previously gained coverage), so people shouldn't unanimously turn on him for a single lapse of judgment. Heck, Smith issued a public apology for his actions on social media the very next day, and recently it was revealed that he's voluntarily stepped down from his position at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. This establishes that he clearly acknowledges he was out of line and is willing to own up to what he did, so let's cut Smith a bit of slack, dang it! On the other hand, while Chris Rock more than likely had no ill intent when he poked fun at Jada Pinkett-Smith's lack of hair, it could nonetheless still be viewed as insensitive given that Pinkett-Smith didn't exactly ask to have alopecia in the first place; despite this, it's still commendable how Rock doesn't seem to be ruminating on what transpired, and I hope both parties can reconcile with one another so everyone can move past this (though the memes of 'the slap' that've been spreading like wildfire can stay/keep on coming, as I find them to be smile-inducing at worst, and downright hilarious at best)!
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