Shortly after The Roots senior writer Candace McDuffie discussed the iconic 2022 Oscars slap on CNN, comedian D.L Hughley shared his take on the subject, seemingly defending Chris Rock. The star believed Chris had the right to decide what jokes to make on stage, especially when it focused on a celebrity who put their lives out there for the world to see. Hence, he believed it was just ironic for anyone to see it differently.
Speaking to TMZ, D.L referenced Candace’s opinion on the Oscar slap, which implied Chris deserved Will Smith’s attack for constantly antagonizing black women for years. According to her, Will’s action was more about accountability, rather than the slap, which still takes the center stage one year later.
D.L Hughley Slams Candace McDuffie’s Take On Chris Rock Oscars Slap
Contrary to Candace’s belief that the slap would make people become more careful about how they treat black women, D.L believes she had it all twisted. According to D.L Hughley, Candace McDuffie, Chris Rock was not punching down on marginalized women by making them the butt of his joke. Rather, he simply chose to make fun of celebrities who publicized their “business,” making it a “fair game.” Going further, D.L noted the double standards in The Root writer’s statement, which seemingly implied a slap was okay, but a comedic reference wasn’t. He added:
“I do think it’s ironic that everybody got a chance to respond about that slap except the man who got slapped. And when he responds, it causes this kind of upheaval. I don’t think you should ever have the right to tell somebody how or when or what’s appropriate for their response.”
Going further, the 60-year-old pointed out that Chris Rock referenced just one black woman out of a million. Hence, making a generalizing statement about him targeting all black women was uncalled for. D.L Hughley concluded by commending the joke Chris Rock made about Jada Pinkett’s alopecia, describing it as brilliant.
This comes after Chris addressed the controversial Oscars Slap in his new Netflix stand-up special, titled Chris Rock: Selective Outrage. The Netflix show marked the first time the comedian spoke about the slap since Will attacked him on stage about one year ago for making a joke about his wife. Although Will has since apologized and faced several sanctions as a result of the slap, including a 10-year Oscars ban, many clearly think the repercussion he now faces barely served to set him right.