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Celebrities far and wide have come to the defense of Jussie Smollett and offered encouraging words of support after a hateful and violent attack.
Kevin Hart also sent supportive sentiments the Empire star’s way but was called out and criticized with many still angered over homophobic jokes that have recently dogged him into stepping down as host of the Oscars, PEOPLE reports.
Hart was blasted for old homophobic jokes and found himself in the middle of controversy He has apologized several times, and has made several appearances on shows like “Good Morning America” and “Ellen” in which comedian Ellen DeGeneres encouraged him to consider hosting the Oscars. But the internet was far less forgiving and continued to remind him of the jokes, insisting the impact lingered.
TV writer Ira Madison III was among the first to come down on Hart.
Another Twitter user echoed him:
“This is your reminder that his jokes reflect actual attitudes that produce what happened to Jussie,” wrote another.
Though they were few, Hart did have his defenders as well.
According to Chicago police, Smollett was walking out a Subway eatery in Chicago early Tuesday at around 2 a.m. when someone yelled “Aren’t you that f***ot Empire n*****?”
That’s reportedly when two suspects wearing ski masks screamed “This is MAGA country!” A noose was wrapped around Smollett’s neck, and he was beaten to the point that a rib was fractured.
According to That Grape Juice, Fox Studios received hate mail earlier this month targeted to the 36-year-old actor. Cut out letters from magazines spelled out “You will die black f**.”
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