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And You Thought I Was Disrespectful To The Dead?

June 29, 2009
Wendie
Jamie Foxx, Michael Jackson
83 Comments

Many of you didn’t appreciate my Heeeeeeerrrrreeeee’s Heaven! post about Ed McMahon — and I maintain that it was a stroke of comedic whimsy — but at least I didn’t slap on some Jheri curl, dress up like Michael Jackson, and moonwalk onto stage the way Jamie Foxx did on the BET Awards last night.  Tacky and disrespectful, right?

Also, in a time where we are trying to all come together, Jamie Foxx speaks of MJ as someone who belonged to “us” — the African American community — and that they decided to share him with everyone else.  Glad to see racism is alive and well in America.

83 CommentsLeave a comment

  • Jesus, can inagine the backlash if a white person said that about a white entertainer? MJ had fans and people who loved him from every race.

    And dressing up as him was very disrespectful. Jamie Foxx will never be anything near MJ.

      • You mean Black OR white. But yeah totally agree with you here, I am neither black nor white and quoting from the song mentioned here (and may be echoing the deceased singer’s sentiments as well) “I am not gonna spend my life being a color!” So Foxx’s “tribute” seems oddly/wrongly inspired!

  • Didn’t BET viewers resent MJ just a few weeks ago for trying to be white? Now he’s black?

    • As a multiracial female with a smattering of both black, white and another race, trust me, you are referred to as the race that suits the situation to the advantage of the name caller.

  • I don’t know that the dancing was so outright offensive. It wasn’t mocking. It is just too soon. The man hasn’t been dead a week.
    Besides that, if you talked to Jamie Foxx a couple weeks ago, I bet you he would have been making all kinds of fun of Michael Jackson. Comedians go with the wind-wherever the money is.

  • There’s a reason why many African-Americans (myself included) refuse to watch and support the foolishness that is BET. Michael belonged to ALL of us. His music knew no race.

    • THANK YOU! I wasn’t offended by this video, it’s just how Jamie Foxx put it. idk.I agree with you N.S. The BET is pretty ridiculous.

    • Here here! Well said, N.S! I heard Foxx’s quote on NPR last night and found it quite embarrassing. It reminded me of that Dave Chappelle skit about the racial draft.

    • “His music knew no race”. I think it’s safe to say those 5 words sum up this post, and everything anyone should have to say on it. Thank you N.S.

  • Michael Jackson has spent the better part of the last twenty years trying to be the farthest thing from black he could be. If anything, African Americans should resent him for that.

    And on a side note, when is going to be not ok to have BET awards anymore? I know racism is alive and well in America, but having a seperate awards show probably doesn’t help matters…

    • It will not be okay when black people get more than just a couple of awards per show. Ignorant or not, the show exists because there are still a lot of black films/songs that don’t get recognized.

      • Is there some quota I’m not aware of? I think campaigning for the recognition of more African American films/music/tv in the standard shows would be more progressive than having separate shows; it only reinforces separation.

      • People dont realize that 25 years ago… in the 80s, not the 60s, a black person’s music wasnt even played on MTV and now you judge them because they still have an award show dedicated to the black race? Racism is still alive for sure on both sides of the color lines and I think it will always be here because of our not that long ago history. It doesnt effect everyone but everyone isnt immune to it either.

      • BULL SHIT… I was around 25 years ago and that was about the time the Billy Jean came out and it was constantly played on MTV.. As well as other black artists.

        Remember that blacks only make up 12% of the countries population. So, for so many of them to be in the entertainment industry is amazing. But keeping this in mind it does seem unfair that they believe that their music or anything else should be recoganized as 50% of everything.

      • There are also still a lot of WHITE songs/films that don’t get recognised, as therer are for every race. I’m an artist, and the last thing that I would want is for people to only pay attention to my work because of my race.

      • If a movie or song is truly good and not garbage (like most entertainment produced by all races) then it doesn’t matter the color of the creators skin.

  • Hmm, wasn’t Michael’s whole deal about bringing peace to everyone and looking past your skin color to appreciate the person everyone beneath? He did sing that song “Black or White” right? “Heal the World” was his too, or am I mistaken? Way to take a million steps back BET and Jamie Fox.

  • I couldn’t believe it when i saw it on the News in the UK this morning, as Becky quite rightly say’s above, can you imagine if a White Comedien said something like that about a white person?? Their would be a national outrage.

    Michael Jackson belonged to everyone, his music knew no colour….

    I really liked Jamie Foxx, but i have to say after that comment i’d sooner turn the TV over than watch him now.

    Disappointed with him.

  • I realize Jamie wants nothing than to be a big time singer… and will sing anytime.. anywhere… as long as there is a TV camera there.

    But geez he is a bad singer. Not a month ago he was on the tribute show for George Strait… singing one of George’s classic hits… yes, the country singer, George Strait.

    But I now realize that no one wants to tell him to STOP. But I will say he is a wonderful musician. Plays the piano with great talent. But the boy is tone deaf when it comes to actual singing live. haha!

    (I wonder how much of “Ray” had to he auto-tuned….)

  • why would they let that jerk embarrass himself in the name of Michael Jackson? it is tacky and disrespectful. jamie foxx is no great talent to me and now he’s an asshole, too.

    RIP MJ

  • This isn’t the same as what you wrote, Wendie. Had you written out a lot of McMahon’s memorable quotes and not inserted his death into the phrases then there wouldn’t have been a problem. I think that what you wrote was moreso insensitive and this is just a tribute to MJ. Jaime Fox’s thing would’ve only been the same as yours had he come out singin “Beat it…into the grave.”

  • I think MJ said it best himself- it DOESN’T MATTER if you are black OR white. maybe it is just because I’m from East London, but to me, race is the biggest non-issue in the world and I truly loathe racism. Why is there any racial pride? In my mind, to be proud of something implies that everything else is worse. I also find it fascinating that you can be “proud” of something you didn’t choose- if it is ok to be proud of yourself simply for being a particular race then surely that makes it ok for people to equally denounce someone simply for being a particular race.

    Racial pride is NOT the opposite of racism, it is the same.

    • I disagree with you on your opinion of the meaning of the word ‘pride’. To be proud of something is an act in and of itself. It has nothing to do with thinking you are better than someone else (unless you choose to make it so). There is a thin line between being proud and thinking you are better, but there is a line between the two. It is not the same. I am proud to be a human first, a woman second and a black woman third. That does not mean that I feel I am better than someone else because I am black. In fact, I am proud to be black just as I am not ashamed to be black. So I completely disagree with you. I think you should look up the meaning of ‘pride’ and the meaning of ‘racism’, you would surely see they are not the same.

      • I didn’t say that being proud of something was the same as being racist. I’m Jewish, I know what racism is! I’m not proud of being a Jew, it’s just a small facet of what I am. Of course that does not by any means mean that I am ashamed of it. I am indifferent to it, and I would expect other people to also be indifferent to it (meaning that I would not want people to discriminate against/for me either negatively OR positively because of it). I’m also not proud of being female, or proud of being white, and the same thing goes for those too. Where does it end? I’m proud I’m a brunette? I’m proud to have green eyes?

        What I am proud of is when I achieve something that invalidates things like prejudice against women, white people, Jews, or anything else that I am, and I’m proud of things that I have done that merit a feeling of pride, such as getting good marks for my dissertation. For example, think how bad it sounds for people to talk about “white pride”. I think racial pride puts a gap between people of different races, and makes life especially difficult for mixed-race people. The focus should be on unity, not differences.

  • Isn’t that funny… wasn’t there some commercial with Jamie in it about a week ago advertising for the BET awards show? And didn’t he say something about how it’s not a “black thing”, that “all of us” should watch it? Yeah…

  • You’re an IDIOT! You know I have read Beets blog for a very long time and I have to say you’re the WORST blogger she has. I DO NOT UNDERSTAND your views on so many things….. I think Jaime Foxx did a wonderful thing! He celebrated his life instead of talking crap and making it sad!

    • I have to agree with Sami on this one. This isn’t really the EvilBeet anymore… Wendie makes majority of the posts now it seems and this site’s appeal to me is decreasing every time I read one of these posts.

      Jamie Fox is a VERY talented man in regards to both his music and his movies. He is a comedian… comedians adopt to their audiences. He was in front of a 99% African American crowd. Of course he is going to refer to the fact that Michael Jackson was also an African American man in a world who at the time of his highest rise, didn’t always accept him because of his skin color. Yes, the past is the past, but we all are a product of our environment and racial tension during Michael’s youth and fame was very high during the 60s-80s. No one should try to deny that.

      • “This isn’t really the EvilBeet anymore… Wendie makes majority of the posts”

        That is true. This site doesn’t feel at all like the Evil Beet anymore. But I like Wendie and often enjoy her writing. I just think Evil Beet should close and Wendie should do her own gossip rag with its own name and persona/logo. This site feels like a band that replaces its lead singer. Beet is clearly (seemingly?) off doing other things at this point. Nothing wrong with that, but apparently I needed to echo the obvious and be annoying. Not my fault. I haven’t pooped yet today and I’m grouchy.

      • Of course you are, but this has been going on for much longer then a week it seems. I’m not really griping about it, please remember. It just is what it is. Your site has changed a lot. You might do little bursts of articles here and there, but this is pretty much the Wendie Wrag now. Che sera sera, really. Just be complimented that people notice, I suppose. *shrug*

      • This isn’t about your week off. I completely agree with what GetYourAdverbsHere is saying, and from a spattering of comments on the other posts we are not the only ones with this opinion.

      • I completely agree as well. This site is no longer the same. Wendie doesn’t agree with most of the things Evil Beet feels about celebs either. It’s two different viewpoints and it’s jarring and annoying. Also, Wendie doesn’t know a thing about the intricacies of race, culture, and specific ethnic groups.

  • Wendie, I posted a very similar blog on my own website yesterday, which in turn was posted on FB and Twitter. I got my ass REAMED for suggesting that Jamie Foxx is a divisive asshole. Thank GOD I’m not the only one who feels slighted by Foxx’s remarks. Shit, the personal messages I rec’d on Twitter and FB were insane.

    And I thought I hated Jamie Foxx BEFORE the BET Awards aired. GAAAAHHHH!!!

    • Julia, haven’t you heard, you are only racist if you are white? Google Kramer court speach and you will understand more.

      I personally like Wndie’s Posts.. I find them firey!!!

    • Sasha,
      Take some time off. You have worked hard even though you don’t get up till noon… You have come a long way in the past 3 years… You desirve some time off. I know you’ve been through it before but don’t let people get you down..

  • YOU all sound so racist!!!!! I’m a fan of this blog, but if this is how the people that read this blog act and feel I may need to jump on the BET blog!

  • Why anyone wants to lay claim to M jackson is beyond me. The guy was a child molester, not a man to be idolised. Let a racist like JF have him!

    • Yea, seriously, at least she sent him to heaven. She could have just said “Heeeere’s death”, “Heeere’s Hell”, “Heeeere’s my entrance into the unknown”…. I dunno I didn’t see what she said as insensitive at all.

  • Can you imagine what the response would be if a white man said anything like “He was a WHITE man, a WHITE man, and He belonged to us! WE decided to share him with the world!” It would be unacceptable! I hate Jamie Foxx even more now. I didn’t think that that was possible!

  • Who told Jamie Foxx he could dance? That was just bad. I had to stop watching because he was just rambling on, it was kind of embarrassing.

  • I remember years ago when Jamie Foxx used to keep his mouth shut….Back whe I used to like him.

  • I remember watching it and thinking, “Could Jamie Foxx be any MORE self-centered?”

    And “Heeeere’s Heaven!” was a stroke of comedic whimsy. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise! :)

    Now can celebrities we all love please stop dying now??

  • ATTENTION: They just removed the video performance from You Tube…. I guess BET woke up and smelled the Foxx….

  • ATTENTION: They just removed the video performance from You Tube…. I guess BET woke up and smelled the Foxx….

  • Oh you poor, poor white people. Life is so tough! It must be so horrible always being the victim. I wouldn’t want to walk a day in your shoes.

    • Sorry Donkey Pounch, its not about being poor white people or haveing a tough life. It is about equality for all people and having respect for you fellow man.

      You know good and well, If someone got up on stage to honor Farrah Fawcett and said ” She was one of us white people. She belonged to us and we shared her with all of you” There would be hell to pay and the person saying would be made out to be the biggest racist of all time.

      But what is going to happen to Jamie Foxx? I’m sure it will be laughed off and forgotten.

      And for respect. Even though Michael had been through the wringer, Jamie should have respected what Michael stood for, equality for all people, instead of turning his memorial into a racial spectical.

      His statements were disrespectful to whites and if it were reversed it would not have been tollerated. Nor should it in this case.

      • Again. Please learn how to spell, or use the automatic spellcheck (so easy even a caveman can do it)! Tollerated? Spectical? Seriously? Did you even finish the 5th grade?

      • Its a freaking blog for goodness sake! If you are so worried about my spelling don’t read my comments.

      • Just because it’s a blog doesn’t mean you shouldn’t know how to spell 5th grade words. There’s no excuse for your stupidity.

      • I’m sorry I can’t spell better than a 5th grader. It is probably linked to my Down Syndrome… Sorry. I wont comment any more.

  • I am a lurker and 1st time poster, so please be kind. :-) Ok! I am a black woman and I have a strong dislike for BET or EBT as I call them. I was pissed that Jamie would make that comment! Michael Jackson is an American Icon. He let me know that it was ok to be me. That we are all equal. Honestly, the very first time I saw MJ was on MTV. So please don’t think all of us think like Jamie Foxx. Blame it on the alcohol. He was drunk last night!

  • Yeah, that comment really made my hair stand up too. He such a f*ing Poser – dates blonde haired blueeyed when no one is looking

  • If he were to come out and apologize (which he won’t because the white population will just shove it under the rug in order to avoid being called racists) it would only be due to the media’s pressure. That’s what happens in these types of situations. e.g. Don Imus, whoever it was that called Miley a slut, etc.
    To that I’d say, don’t bother. I’m perfectly content just knowing he’s a tool. I hope he spares us all a fake and pressured apology.

    • I disagree. I think he should apologize for his statements. I think it would go a long way to help promote equality. It would show white people that not all black people feel that they are perfect and that they make mistakes and are willing to say I’m sorry when they do.

      Any white person would be forced to and I think he should too. If nothing else just to show that blacks and white are approaching equal ground. Maybe they will do away with BET, The Black Miss America, The NAACP and the UNCF…
      http://womensthougths.wordpress.com/

  • Jamie Foxx is annoying and his comments (and his impersonation) were tacky, but not racist. His comments were exclusionary, but not racist. If Oprah died and a woman said that she was “ours”, so what? It’s a stupid comment to make. In reaction to MTV playing “black” music, Michael Jackson changed the landscape on that. FACT: MTV’s programming before Michael Jackson did not have many persons with brown skin in the line up. PERIOD.

    The true definition of a racist is emobodied in the 88 yr old white supremist who walked into the holocaust museum recently and shot dead the 39-yr old husband and father, Stephen Johns. Mr.Johns was one of the security guards, who happened to hold the door open for the old man as he entered the musuem. The old man didn’t thank him, he shot him with a rifle, and Mr.Johns died soon after. This old man is still alive, and he is an anti-semite who believes all Jews are evil… (see article linked below).

    THAT is racist. Jamie Fox making ridiculous comments at an awards show are not. Words can be heavy, true. But, he in no way propagates racist views. He is guilty of being insensitive (perhaps), small-minded. I believe the Beet, Wendie, and Kelly are hilarious and do a great job with their articles, but we all need to be more careful with the insinuations of racism and racist behavior.

    http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-racist-88-shoots-guard-dead-at-holocaust-museum-1702148.html

  • I get what he was saying. MJ was performing in the 70’s, a few years after the Civil Rights movement. There were plenty of places he and his family wouldn’t have been welcome to dine or even just hang out. They wouldn’t have been allowed in my uncle shop, that for sure and that was the way it was. For a lot of AA kids in MJ’s heyday, he was one of very few successful AA performers that made it mainstream, so if those same AA kids who are now adults want to think of him as “theirs” then let them. Who does it hurt? Also, there’s really no point to the “what if a white guy said this” type comments, because that sort of scenario is implausible and nonsensical. I’m sure if some “white guy” said the same thing about Eminem, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton et al wouldn’t even bat an eye, because who cares?