Prayers are going up for Jussie Smollett. The actor and singer was reportedly hospitalized yesterday after he was attacked by Make American Great Again terrorists for being Black and gay. Activists and celebrities for all walks of life are showing their support on social media.
See Also: Jussie Smollett Said ‘F*ck No!’ To His Character On ‘Empire’ Having A White Boyfriend
While walking to a Subway in Chicago, two men reportedly yelled racial and homophobic slurs at the 36-year-old actor after he exited the restaurant, investigators told The Hollywood Reporter. They punched him, allegedly poured bleach on him and one of the suspects also put a rope around his neck. They fled the scene. It’s being investigated as a “possible” hate crime — although it sounds pretty clear that was an obvious hate crime.
“The rise in hate crimes is directly linked to President Donald J. Trump’s racist and xenophobic rhetoric,” an NAACP statement said. “It is dangerous for any society to allow a tone of divisiveness and hatred to dominate the political discourse. As this rhetoric continues to bleed into our everyday lives, dangerous behavior will continue to place many law abiding individuals at risk.”
Here’s a police statement about its investigation.
Investigators are gathering video evidence, identifying potential witnesses and establishing a timeline of the incident.
Threatening letters directed at Smollett were reportedly sent to Fox Studios in Chicago. The cutout letters said, “You will die black f**.” See below:
https://twitter.com/Homiekage/status/1090283693497896960
Smollett has stared on Fox’s popular series “Empire” since 2015. He plays Jamal, a successful singer in the musical Lyon family who is openly gay. He has been in the news recently for supporting Bennett College—an all-women HBCU that was on the brink of losing its accreditation.
The school—which was founded in 1873 and became a women’s institution in 1926—needs to raise $5 million by February 2019 to stay afloat. Smollett and his brother took it upon themselves to use their platforms to spread awareness about what’s happening at Bennett College and motivate individuals to pitch in and help save the school.
Smollett posted a photo of both him and his brother donning shirts that read “Stand With Bennett” accompanied with a caption that read “In the 1930s we had 121 #HBCUs now we’re at 101. Don’t let us be down to 100 if #BennettCollege, who has made the education of black women a priority since 1926, closes its doors.”
Anyone with information about yesterday’s attack is asked to call Area Central Detectives at 312-747-8382.
See the reactions below from activists and celebrities.
