Ciara calls out commentator Jason Whitlock for his insensitivity toward the death of Tyre Nichols.
While on Tucker Carlson Tonight, Whitlock spoke about Nichols’ death and put the blame on single Black mothers. “There is a racial element. And this is a story about young Black men and their inability to treat each other in a humane way,” he said.
Whitlock also said, “Everybody involved in this on the street level was either 24 to 32 years old. Everybody. It was a group of young Black men, five-on-one. Looked like gang violence to me. It looked like what young Black men do when they’re supervised by a single Black woman.”
He added, “And that’s what they got going on in the Memphis Police Department. They’ve elected some, or put some Black woman in charge of the police force, and we are getting the same kind of chaos and disunity and violence that we see in a lot of these cities run by single mothers.”
Ciara quickly went on Twitter to call out Whitlock on his insensitive comments. The singer wrote, “.@whitlockjason as a black man to get on national tv and say something like this is irresponsible. A lot of amazing kids have come from single mothers. For you to also undermine single black women in the midst of this tragedy is so sad. This woman just lost her son! Do better!”
Others were quick to also put Whitlock in his place on social media as well. Bishop Talbert Swan said in a tweet, “White boys go into churches, supermarkets, schools, malls, and nightclubs, and violently murder innocent people. Jason Whitlock never blamed white women for this.”
Politicians such as Oklahoma State Representative Monroe Nichols and New York congressman Jamaal Bowman also had some words for Whitlock.
Five Black Memphis Police Officers fatally beat Nichols during a traffic stop. The Memphis police department released the bodycam footage of the brutal attack, showing that he was beaten, tased, and pepper-sprayed.
The officers were fired and charged with second-degree murder and other charges. Our thoughts and prayers are will his family and loved ones.