Jimmy Fallon Makes Televised Apology For ‘Blackface’ Footage, Wants To Change
Image via JStone / Shutterstock.com
An SNL sketch from 2000 that starred Jimmy Fallon wearing blackface made its rounds online a little while back, causing the “#JimmyFallonIsOverParty” hashtag to trend on Twitter. The television host quickly apologized on Twitter for his impersonation of Chris Rock in dark makeup, but recent events have driven Fallon to make a public apology on-air.
In the wake of protests fighting for racial justice and condemning police brutality, Fallon made his first camera appearance since the controversy on the Tonight Show to address his previous behavior, as well as invited Derrick Johnson, president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), to discuss how he could be a “better ally” for people of color.
“Seeing what is going on in our country, I’m not going to have a normal show tonight,” the host expressed. “I’m going to start this personally, and then expand out because that’s where we all need to start, with ourselves and looking at ourselves in the mirror.”
Fallon then brought up the recent controversy where he was forced to “really examine myself.” He said he was advised to keep silent on the matter, and took the advice “for a minute” because he was afraid his response would “make this worse.”
After deliberating, he said he finally broke his silence because, “I realized that I can’t not say I’m horrified. And I’m sorry. And I’m embarrassed.”
“I realized that the silence is the biggest crime that white guys like me and the rest of us are doing…” he continued. “We need to say something. We need to keep saying something… More than just one day on Twitter.”
Fallon also acknowledged that he needed to “get educated about how to stop the silence,” and consulted experts to help him and viewers get better at being anti-racist, as well as help drive change by making proper discussions about the nation’s systemic racism.
Johnson explained that racism is “learned” and institutionalized, “and for us to unlearn behavior, we have to be honest about it and create spaces where we can talk about it.”
The NAACP president urged audience members to hold peer-to-peer conversations, in addition to utilizing their platforms, such as social media, to celebrate “people’s uniqueness,” ultimately putting difference under a new and healthy light.
[via Mashable, cover image via JStone / Shutterstock.com]
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