The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: Jussie Smollett

  • Jussie Smollett calls himself the ‘Gay Tupac’

    Jussie Smollett calls himself the ‘Gay Tupac’

    Jussie Smollett’s lies affect other hate crime victims

    I was shocked but not surprised when I first heard Jussie Smollett was attacked by men in MAGA hats. I remember turning to my friend and saying, “This sounds like an episode of ‘Empire,’ it’s so crazy!” I mean we are living in 2019, Trump’s America, anything is possible. Then the details of what happened started to emerge and it made me think twice.

    If someone tells me they are a victim I automatically believe them. I will always believe the victim until evidence proves otherwise. Celebrities and politicians were coming from every direction in support of Smollett and calling out the racists who hurt him.

    I admit I had my doubts about the story from the start. I mean, who goes to get Subway during a polar vortex (Chicago was colder than Antarctica) at 2 a.m.? I think the biggest red flag is what they yelled, “Aren’t you that empire…?!” This statement made me think, “What racist white person is watching Empire in 2019?” I barely know black people who watch empire. Most of us fell off in season two. I know people are extremely racist, but who’s really trying to mess with Jamal Lyon from Empire? Before this scandal Smollett was non-problematic, which made the attack situation more shocking.

    Then we started getting reports from the Cook County Chicago police that Smollett wasn’t sharing the full story with everyone. The two white men in MAGA hats were in fact two big buff Nigerian men. Then we started to hear that Smollett paid them $3,000 to stage the attack with the fake letter and all. Even with these reports I needed to see evidence to believe it because Chicago police have a history of corruption and falsifying evidence. When the video of the men purchasing the bleach and rope emerged, I was no longer on Smollett side. As the days unraveled, we found the police had a phone record of him calling the men and the check that Smollett wrote to the men.

    The police charged Smollett for falsifying a police report. Smollett’s alleged motive was to make more money on his “Empire” salary. I believe that he was not working alone in his attempted hate crime hoax. I think there are more people involved. Who knows but Jussie Smollett decided to be the scapegoat so now he must face the consequences. I also want the two Nigerian men to be held responsible too. While they told the truth they still agreed to be complicit in the deceit. I’m sure if the police didn’t find out the real story those men would’ve never came out with the truth.

    What makes me the most upset about this situation is there are real hate crimes happening every day. Smollett used police resources for a publicity stunt. This event does affect people when they report because it makes people second guess victims when they do report crimes. In such divided times we didn’t need a Jussie Smollett hate crime hoax.

    I’m disappointed as a fan because I liked Smollett before all the drama. I thought he was a good role model for other black gay men. He never seemed like someone who would go to great lengths for exposure. It’s sad to see a someone with so much talent throw it away for nothing. We will just have to watch the justice system do their job in handling the Gay Tupac.

  • EDITORIAL: A chance to highlight pivotal African Americans

    EDITORIAL: A chance to highlight pivotal African Americans

    Don’t let Jussie Smollet’s actions ruin what Black History Month can accomplish

    Jussie Smollett is an American actor on the popular tv show “Empire” who staged a racially and homophobic attack on himself to boost his career. Smollett alleged attack has mountains of evidence that it was staged.

    The case has left Smollett’s fans and colleagues stunned. This scandal comes out on the tail end of Black History Month, which hurts more. We should not leave Black History Month on a bad note, so we want to highlight some black individuals who left their mark in history.

    Claudette Colvin was a teen in 1955 living in Montgomery, Alabama as an African American. While inside a bus, she refused to move from her seat for a white passenger, saying that it was a violation of her constitutional rights. She was arrested for the action and labeled a troublemaker by her community, leading her to drop out of school. Despite Colvin’s actions preceding Rosa Parks by nine months, little is known about what she did. She went on to be part of one of the four plaintiffs in Browder v. Gayle, where Montgomery’s segregation laws were found to be unconstitutional.

    Henrietta Lacks was an African American woman who passed away due to cervical cancer. Her cells were collected, and in a rare case they doubled every 24 hours. The aptly named HeLa cells are now used to study the effects of radiation and poisons without using human subjects, and were used for the development of the polio virus. Although there is controversy in the use of the HeLa cells, as Lacks’ family never received any recognition or compensation for the discovery. Despite this, the HeLa cells were pivotal in their medical uses.

    Bessie Coleman was the first African American woman to stage a public flight in America. Coleman lived in Atlanta, Texas in 1892 until moving to Chicago at age 23. She wanted to explore aviation, but due to being black and a woman she faced racial and gender discrimination. Despite challenges, she broke through those barriers and received her pilot’s license after moving to France. She had a dream of starting an African American flight school in the US, but tragically died during an aerial flight rehearsal at the age of 34. Coleman was a pioneer for other African Americans who aspired to become a pilot, and was inducted in the National Aviation Hall of Fame in 2006.

    The Harlem Hellfighters were the 369th Infantry Regiment and mainly consisted of African Americans. The Harlem Hellfighters fought in the trenches of Germany during World War I for six months, the longest any American infantry regiment fought during World War I. Two of their bravest soldiers were privates Henry Johnson and Needham Roberts, who fought off 24 German soldiers killing four during a surprise attack. Both Johnson and Roberts were awarded the French Croix de Guerre and were the first Americans ever to receive the award. This is one of many awards that the Harlem Hellfighters received.

    We wanted to move away from the negativity that came from this year’s Black History Month. Instead we want to highlight these African American individuals that had a pivotal role in shaping history and inspiring others.