Trinity Jones
\nStaff Writer<\/span><\/p>\n

Comedian Chris Rock, a 2022 Oscar Award show presenter made history as the first person assaulted live on stage of the Academy Awards. Known for his controversial stand-up comedy specials, before listing the nominees, Rock cracked jokes on multiple nominated actors and actresses within the show\u2019s crowd.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rock\u2019s joke toward Jada Pinkett-Smith, saying he couldn\u2019t wait for \u201cG.I Jane 2\u201d<\/span> to come out, referencing her buzzcut hairstyle, began a series of unfortunate events.<\/span><\/p>\n

Pinkett-Smith, who is a victim of a hair-loss condition called Alopecia which causes hair loss, showed her disproval of the comment.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Her husband, well known multi-faceted actor Will Smith, initially laughed at the joke, but after noticing his wife\u2019s reaction, decided to strike back, literally, when he walked on stage and back-handed the comedian before returning to his seat to repeatedly say, \u201ckeep my wife\u2019s name out your f*cking mouth.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

On March 4, almost a year later, Netflix released a special, \u201cSelective Outrage\u201d featuring Rock and fans finally got to hear how the comedian felt about the incident.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cYou all know what happened to me, getting smacked by Suge Smith\u2014it still hurts,\u201d Rock said comparing Smith to Suge Knight, the convicted felon and former CEO of Death Row Records. \u201cI got \u2018Summertime\u2019 ringing in my ears, but I\u2019m not a victim, baby\u2014I took that hit like Pacquiao,\u201d he said during the stand-up.<\/span><\/p>\n

Rock went on to say, \u201cI have rooted for Will Smith my whole life\u2014now I watch \u201cEmancipation\u201d just to see him get whooped,\u201d referring to the enslaved male role Smith played in the movie.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Donovan Morton, a junior biology\/pre-med major from Canton, Miss., felt the slave comment was offensive.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s past insensitive\u2014that\u2019s crazy,\u201d said Morton.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tionda Yarbrough, a junior business administration major from Beloit, Wis., was also offended by the comment.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI get you got slapped and I get you were embarrassed, but comparing that to watching a movie about a slave getting beat is weird,\u201d Yarbrough says. \u201cYou could have said anything else.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Mark Henderson, founder of MADDRAMA Performance Troupe and faculty member within the Speech and Theatre department on the campus felt otherwise.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI can\u2019t say that I felt like it was insensitive in the context,\u201d Henderson said. \u201cAnything about slavery and glorifying it or putting it in that light is kind of awkward for us as African-Americans.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Henderson believes the comment could be considered a form of projecting that same hurt onto Will Smith as opposed to that of the character.<\/span><\/p>\n

Morton feels that Rock caused the events on Oscar night is now victimizing himself.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cSeeing that he was the reason that he got slapped, I think he\u2019s trying to become a victim even though he says he\u2019s not one. He was the reason why this all went down, if the joke was never made [then] nothing would\u2019ve ever happened,\u201d said Morton.<\/span><\/p>\n

Henderson believes Rock\u2019s way of responding was all about the benjamins.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt was his choice\u2014[Rock] decided which avenue he wanted to use to respond and deciding to wait to use it through this avenue probably gave him a whole lot of money,\u201d Henderson said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Henderson added, \u201cWe can\u2019t tell a person how they should respond or when they should respond or what they should respond to.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

According to IndieWire, \u201cSelective Outrage\u201d Reached Netflix\u2019s Top 10 in U.S. with just a day of viewing.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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