Ayanna Pressley, a squad member and Massachusetts Democratic Rep, put out a tweet showing her support of Will Smith in his slapping of Chris Rock because of the joke made about Smith’s wife, This was later deleted after pushback.
“#Alopecia nation stand up! Thank you #WillSmith Shout out to all the husbands who defend their wives living with alopecia in the face of daily ignorance & insults,” stated Pressley.
“Women with baldies are for the real men only only. Boys need not apply,” she went on to add.
Just-deleted tweet from Rep. Ayanna Pressley #mapoli #Oscars pic.twitter.com/gGFlStTQ3D
— Grace Panetta (@grace_panetta) March 28, 2022
Pressley has issued a statement openly about her own fight with alopecia.
“In the fall, when I was getting my hair retwisted, is the first time that I was made aware that I had some patches,” stated Pressley back in 2020 when she first unveiled her condition, as reported by The Hill. “From there, it accelerated very quickly.”
Jamaal Bowman, the New York Democratic Rep, also put forth a tweet that seemed to be in support of Smith’s response to Rock.
“Teachable Moment: Don’t joke about a Black Woman’s hair,” he wrote. He also later made the choice to delete his post.
Jamaal Bowman also briefly tweeted about Will Smith assaulting Chris Rock before deleting it pic.twitter.com/KLKXbI4o9E
— Ben Jacobs (@Bencjacobs) March 28, 2022
Ben Jacobs, who originally posted about the tweet from Bowman, later went on to add, “Have been told that this was tweeted by staff on the congressman’s account under the assumption that the assault was fake/scripted.”
Have been told that this was tweeted by staff on the congressman's account under the assumption that the assault was fake/scripted https://t.co/Ol3cmBTIRY
— Ben Jacobs (@Bencjacobs) March 28, 2022
The tweets were sent out on Sunday evening in the wake of Smith slapping Rock in the middle of an award presentation during the Oscars. This happened because Rock made a joke about Smith’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith.
“Jada, I love ya. ‘G.I. Jane 2,’ can’t wait to see it,” Rock stated, seeming in reference to Smith’s wife.
Full video/audio of Will Smith vs. Chris Rock. (NSFW language obviously.) #Oscars pic.twitter.com/k7pX27lI3J
— Adam Silverstein (@SilversteinAdam) March 28, 2022
Smith then strode onto the stage and slapped the comedian across the face. “Keep my wife’s name out of your f***ing mouth!” he shouted after taking his seat once again.
The actor then seemed to apologize for the outburst as part of his acceptance speech, though Rock’s name was not brought up at all.
“I want to apologize to the Academy, I want to apologize to my fellow nominees,” he stated. “This is a beautiful moment and I’m not crying for winning an award. It’s not about winning an award for me. It’s about being able to shine a light on all of the people … Art imitates life. I look like the crazy father just like they said … just like they said about Richard Williams. Love will make you do crazy things,” stated Smith as part of his speech.
Smith won the award for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his job in “King Richard.”
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