Terry
Crews recently got into a social media debate about how men should
react in the face of sexual misconduct, and how race factors in.
One
person started the debate when he appeared to question the actor's
masculinity earlier this week by tweeting, “Some men actually defend
themselves,” tagging an article about actor Jason Priestley recalling
punching Harvey Weinstein at a party.
Weinstein,
who is accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women, has acknowledged
inappropriate behavior, but has denied any allegations of nonconsensual
sex or retaliation against women for refusing his advances.
After
a slew of Twitter users slammed the person in question, Crews also
replied, “White people in America can do a lot of things I’d be arrested
for.”
This
started a back-and-forth debate in the thread and on Crews' social
media page lasting almost two days into late Wednesday night.
Regarding
the suggestion that Crews should have physically defended himself from
his alleged assaulter, agent Adam Venit -- whom he is now suing for
sexual battery, emotional distress and negligence, among others -- one
person replied, “There is factual evidence that black people are given
harsher sentences than white people for the same crimes committed.
Public perception of black people is very negative, and if Terry had
reacted with violence, it would've just reinforced the stereotypes about
us."PHOTO:
Terry Crews speaks out on 'Good Morning America' about an alleged
incident in which he says a 'high-level Hollywood executive' groped him
at a party. (ABC)
Hundreds of people replied, with comments split.
Some
people brought up Crews' wealth being more important than race, while
another person commented, "I think you're a great guy and very talented
... please don't fall into the anti-white cesspool ... you're better
then [sic] that!"
As
the comments became heated, Crews admitted that he is privileged,
writing, "No one should feel shamed for being privileged. I’M
PRIVILEGED. But people confuse privilege with VALUE. No one is more
valuable than anyone else." But he didn't back down.
Fans
continued to support Crews by telling him to never back down from
online trolls that try to bait him into this type of argument.
Crews then spoke out about his ongoing lawsuit.
"My
first attorney told me I should sue for charity because of the
'perception.' I let him know white men sue for money all the time. Then I
fired him," he wrote.
Crews
named his alleged accuser as Venit last month on "Good Morning America"
and claimed the agent groped him last year at a party. He then filed a
suit against Venit and his employer, William Morris Endeavor, earlier
this month. Venit was suspended by WME earlier this year.
No comments:
Post a Comment