Hautetalk: Will Smith Slapping Chris Rock Is A Classic Example Of How Male Aggression Makes Matters Worse

Hautetalk: Will Smith Slapping Chris Rock Is A Classic Example Of How Male Aggression Makes Matters Worse

Earlier on Sunday during the Oscars 2022, comedian Chris Rock cracked a joke about actor Will Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith being. Referring to the 1997 film G.I. Jane, in which Demi Moore’s character shaves her head after joining the armed forces, the comedian said that he would look forward to seeing Jada in the sequel of the film hinting at the fact that the actress is bald. In response, Jada Pinkett Smith’s husband Will Smith got up from his seat and walked to the stage of the 94th Academy Awards and slapped comedian Chris Rock while screaming profanities at him and asking him to not take his wife’s name.

Ever since the violent altercation was aired on international television, the clip has been going viral and Twitterverse is divided over who is right and who isn’t. And IMHO, Jada Pinkett Smith is right! Yepp, you read that right. Now, we have a comedian here who cracked a rather crass joke and targetted a woman and her health condition on an international platform and in response, the woman’s husband goes on to hit the man. TBH, both Will Smith and Chris Rock are wrong here. If you take a closer look at the video you will notice Jada Pinkett Smith rolling her eyes upon hearing the joke cracked by the comedian at her expense and at the same time, you’ll also see Will Smith sitting right next to her and laughing at the joke. And just seconds later, the very same man gets up and goes on to slap the comedian for his joke. Well, okay then.

So, hear me out here. I’m not saying that Will Smith was wrong for being angry but what he did wasn’t right either. We have a whole faction of Twitter hailing the man for standing up for his woman and protecting her but TBH, it was a little extra. Will Smith actually had an international platform to raise his voice and share his opinions about the crass joke and make a point out of it but what did he do instead? He chose violence. If I’m being honest here, this just looked like a display of toxic masculinity in a bid to protect the ‘honour of a woman’. We all know Jada Pinkett Smith to be a bold, independent and outspoken woman who can stand up for herself but the fact is that she chose to simply roll her eyes and let it go but her husband thought it to be a good idea to respond to the comment in a violent manner. Not only did he bring shame to himself but her created a big deal out of his wife’s Alopecia because now we have an entire world googling what alopecia is!

Apart from this, let me point something out, a woman is no longer a man’s property and does not need to be protected. Can we please let women speak for themselves instead of getting into brawls to protect their honour and whatnot? Also, let’s face it, Jada Pinkett Smith reacted to the joke immediately and maybe she just didn’t need her husband to assault a man to express his displeasure. TBH, had Will Smith taken to social media to make his point in a mild manner, his wife’s health condition would not have become a public spectacle. Moreover, he had a whole international stage to talk about his wife’s Alopecia and the struggles people face due to the condition and demand that the comedian apologise to his wife. He also had the option to sort this issue out backstage after speaking to his wife about how she wanted to go about it.

To all the people including Tiffany Haddish, saying that Will Smith standing up for his wife is amazing because women of colour are the most oppressed in the world, isn’t this just another sign of oppression? We have a woman who can speak for herself and pick and fight her battles but her husband decides to pick her battles and fight them for her because he’s more offended by what was said? Okay, I get it. A man being protective of his lady is beautiful. I agree but how would you feel if someone spoke for you and fought for you instead of asking for your opinion? This is yet another situation where a man felt more insulted by something said to a woman and took it personally and made a bad situation, worse!

https://twitter.com/ybfmiami/status/1508463238681444358?s=20&t=DYYFzw5upr_1jw1MeXjuqQ

Having said that, Will Smith has some guts. After winning the best actor award, during his speech, Will Smith made an attempt to defend his violent actions hinting that he did what he did to protect his family. Okay, now here’s the thing. We had a man of colour winning an Oscar, his first ever Oscar award which is a huge win in itself. But Will Smith did not make history by winning the awards, instead he made history by slapping a comedian on an international platform and tarnished his first Oscar. As if that wasn’t bad enough, he chose to make his acceptance speech all about his violent actions in an attempt to defend himself. Not cool at all dude. How do you defend choosing violence when you had the choice to handle the situation in a calm and composed manner? I’m not saying that he shouldn’t have been angry. Will Smith’s anger is valid but his actions just aren’t. Moreover, we have a man who chose violence defending his actions saying even more problematic things like her is the protector of his family and that love makes people do crazy things. Uff, he just put a foot in his mouth with his speech. Also, all the #TeamWillSmith peeps, can we please stop normalising violence under the guise of protecting one’s family or a woman’s honour?

https://twitter.com/NUFUO_mu_IGP/status/1508369249441665026?s=20&t=9VAXa9aPQoLnTlLS0iVu0g

But wait, there’s more. Apparently, Will Smith had to be consoled by Denzel Washington, Bradley Cooper and Tyler Perry during the commercial break following the incident. Okay…firstly, this dude did not need to be consoled or comforted. He was the one doing the slapping on national television. Can we stop glorifying this man for being emotional after he assaulted another man? I understand Jada Pinkett Smith needing to be consoled, the joke was cracked at her expense and her struggles but Will Smith, na, not at all, especially after he slapped Chris Rock.

Also Read: From Kristen Stewart’s Shorts To Will Smith Punching Chris Rock, Here’s How Twitter Reacted To The Bizarre Oscars 2022

Another thing to note here is that just because Chris Rock got slapped in the face, people are going ahead and defending him and calling him a good sport for continuing the show like nothing happened and the choosing not to press charges against Will Smith for his behaviour. Now let me put this out there, Chris Rock is no saint in this situation. Okay, I get humour but what I don’t get is a man making fun out of a woman because she looks a certain way due to her health condition, that too on an international platform. And not just that, this man did not even have the decency to apologise to the woman for cracking the joke.

Now, let me remind you, this is not the first time that Chris Rock has cracked a crass and rather derogatory joke on Jada Pinkett Smith. Earlier, in 2016 during the 88th Academy Awards, Chris Rock had made fun of Jada for boycotting the Oscars as not person of colour had been nominated. He joked and said that Jada boycotting the Oscars is like him boycotting Rihanna’s panties as he wasn’t even invited. I cannot even begin to explain how shameful that joke it. It’s distasteful and downright cheap.

Also Read: Jada Pinkett Smith Has Alopecia. Here’s Everything You Need To Know About It, From Causes To Treatment

So, all of you #TeamChrisRock get off your high horse because he is no angel. Plus, this is not the first time that crass and distasteful jokes have been made on this international platform. While I’m glad that the female hosts spoke about things like the ‘Don’t Say Gay’ Bill, pay disparity among other things but we still had to hear a lot of insensitive jokes that we wish we didn’t have to. It’s 2022 so, it’s safe to say that it’s time we change the kind of jokes we crack.

Oscars 2022: Will Smith Slapping Chris Rock For Mocking Jada Pinkett Smith Sends Twitter In A Frenzy. Flora Saini Reacts

Janvi Manchanda

​​She uses her pen to slice through patriarchy. She could be Geet one day, Wednesday Addams next. Writing is the bane of her existence and the object of all her desires!

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