This week, Will Smith -- perhaps the most bankable star of his generation -- won an Oscar for Best Actor for "King Richard." But that wasn't why he made headlines. He made headlines because during the Academy Awards ceremony, comedian Chris Rock told a joke about Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Jada, it seems, suffers from alopecia; Rock, presumably not knowing about her condition, made a joke about her starring in "G.I. Jane 2," a nod to her closely shaven head. Initially, Will Smith laughed. Then he glanced around and saw Jada was upset.
At which point he got up, strode to the stage, and proceeded to slap Rock directly across the face.
Then he sat down again.
Rock, for his part, tried to play off the situation as a joke. But Will Smith wasn't letting it go. Instead, he began screaming at Rock: "Keep my wife's name out ya f---ing mouth!" Rock replied, "Wow, dude, it was a 'G.I. Jane' joke." To which Smith repeated, screaming, "Keep my wife's name out ya f---ing mouth!" Which, presumably, would make Rock the first man to whom Smith had ever uttered such a sentiment, given the couple's stated dedication to their open marriage.
Suffice it to say, it was perhaps the oddest incident in nationally televised history. The only rivals might have been Justin Timberlake ripping off Janet Jackson's top to reveal a pasty at the Super Bowl XXXVIII halftime show, or the live OJ Simpson car chase during the NBA Finals. But this event was even odder, given the utterly sudden nature of the assault. Rock, after all, was hired to lightly roast actors. Will Smith was there to pick up his first Oscar. And the whole thing devolved into actual violence.
It's easy to brush off the event as yet another disposably silly celebrity moment. It would be easier if Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., hadn't immediately tweeted (and then deleted), "Thank you #WillSmith Shout out to all the husbands who defend their wives living with alopecia in the face of daily ignorance & insults." Or if Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., hadn't tweeted, "Teachable Moment: Don't joke about a Black Woman's hair." Or if the entire Academy Awards audience hadn't given Smith a standing ovation a few moments later. Or if there hadn't been widespread support for Smith's slap online, thanks to the now-common belief that verbal insults constitute a form of violence to which violence is an acceptable -- indeed, commendable -- response.
The social compact by which verbiage and violence remain strictly separated is a delicate one. For most of human history, words were treated as punishable by physical response -- dueling was commonplace in societies for centuries, familial retaliation for insult was regular, and wars were even fought over verbal slights. But over time, civilized people traded away the privilege of personal use of force in favor of rules; truly offensive words could sometimes meet with social disapproval or even ostracization, but certainly not violence.
Now we seem to be reversing the trend. The entire theory of "microaggressions" suggests that if you are offended, it is because someone has "aggressed" against you -- and aggression requires response. To deny someone's preferred pronouns is now an act of "erasure" amounting to violence, since the person so slighted might feel damaged in their sense of worth or authenticity. Once we reconnect the severed link between words and violence, civilization will begin to break down.
We can hope that Will Smith's slap remains an aberration; a country in which comedians are regularly assaulted for making jokes will soon be a rather humorless place. But unless Americans are willing to reestablish the hard barrier between words and violence, we will become a far more silent and far more violent nation.
Ben Shapiro, 38, is a graduate of UCLA and Harvard Law School, host of "The Ben Shapiro Show," and editor-in-chief of DailyWire.com. He is the author of the New York Times bestsellers "How To Destroy America In Three Easy Steps," "The Right Side Of History," and "Bullies." To find out more about Ben Shapiro and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.
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31 comments:
If Will Smith was a real man, he would not have bitch slapped Rock. He would have closed his fist and cold cocked him with a sucker punch. What a p***y.
Excellent. Reason #999 why I don't watch the Oscars, Emmys, etc., nor patronize contemporary movies.
Looks like Jackson violence is spilling over to Hollywood.
Can you imagine what Rock would have said if she had on a Maxine Waters/James Brown wig ?
They are both Scientologists, so I wonder how how this will negatively affect their Operating Thetan (OT) level?
Just for assuming that we care what the Hollyweirds do is a slap in the face.
Once again the aftermath is really all about WHO, not WHAT. If Will Smith were someone else not as rich, not as famous, not as black, he would be immediately ejected from the scene and criminally charged with assault and battery. But our society has devolved into a bizarre fiasco where all principles and values are relative depending on WHO they are being applied to.
Will Smith is a privileged bona fide resident of this society and he merely exercised his rights to be an idiot. He is well within his rights. I think his acceptance speech made it clear.
I’m just happy we now have a Hollywood precedent that will allow other stars to slap the $&%* out of Amy Shumer, Trevor Noah or any other “comedian” who makes a joke that hurts someone’s feelings.
Will Smith is too big to fail and therefore a protected celeb that they were unable to cancel with out internal conflict due in part to him being a minority…se we have come full circle and even they agree that violence is indeed the answer!
Just apologize after and all must be forgiven.
I’d pay a small fee to watch Stern interview Rogan now that we agree slapping is ok.
Generations were raised on "Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words will never hurt me." They suffered through so much we can't even imagine - and then fought and died in wars like men and women.
Today? They're all little bitches and brats who think they can use violence over the smallest verbal sleight....and they won't be lining up to defend anything or anyone ever. Tantrums and violence work in the modern age...so we will get a lot more of it, until it's slapped back down with God's justice.
There's no hard line between ghetto and stage. Consider all the rappers who kill each other over some minor slight. Rock was solid as a rock, who other than Jesus could be composed after such an attack?
Will Smith: “Love will make you do crazy things”
Tina Turner: “ What’s love got to do, got to do with it?”
Lighten up Francis.
Imagine the list of charges if Jack Nicholson slapped Chris Rock like that.
He would go to jail, never be in another film, and get sued.
It’s a hell of a precedent to set - even if you cry on stage afterwards.
Right?
Will Smith’s slap had zero to do with micro aggressions or pronouns, you partisan hack.
For the good of the country, you should stop.
Will Smith was just doubling down on being a cuck. Just like Kanye.
As the great philosopher Will Smith opined:
Don't start nuthin
and there won't be nuthin
Half you clowns rushed to Google Alopecia. The other half? Well, it flew right between your ears.
This is nothing more, or less, than another one-week deflection from Biden's incompetence and the cess pool our country is in.
It was all staged to get people talking about he Oscars.
They are both actors and know how to fake a blow.
And it worked - You all fell for it.
Hollywood makes a maggot throw up 🤮!
6:29 I agree with you that Will Smith was putting on an act. But his audience was his crazy ass wife not us.
What does opine mean?
@6:49 PM
It was staged. It was just another "Wag the Dog" moment produced by Hollywood to deflect from how the Joe Xiden administration is destroying the once great America.
@8:17 AM and @8:38 AM - yes, very staged. When someone is going to be hit in the face that automatic response is to raise a hand to deflect the blow. Rock only turned his head, which is what actors do.
It's just more Hollyweird trying to be relevant. Oh, and there was a delay in the live coverage to bleep out potty mouthed Smith. How convenient.
Note: I didn't watch the program and haven't for decades, but have seen the clips.
"It was staged."
Why in the world would Will Smith agree to stage something that significantly harms his brand and earning potential?
Will is bish! Chris probably had dinner at the”Red Table” back in the day. “She’s a very kinky girl.” - Rick James
This was staged goofballs ! And it's not a first ! Jerry Lawler /Andy Kaufman. These two worked the hell out of ya'll. Not me.
9:31 : You are kidding ? The room gave him a standing ovation ! Chris Rock ticket sales went thru the roof ! IT WAS STAGED.
"Welkum too Earf"
When you open up your marriage to disrespect (ie: allow additional partners into your marriage) you have no ground to stand on.
Neither husband nor wife can can say "You didn't defend my honor." Their marriage had no honor.
@3:28 PM
Will Smith assaulted Chris Rock because he knew who to slap. That's all it boils down to.
@9:31 AM
Finally, a sign of intelligent life in the comment section. Only an imbecile would believe the assault was staged.
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