Here’s why social media users are sympathetic towards John Davidson after shouting racial slurs at “Sinners” stars
A derogatory term was shouted at Black actors while on stage at the BAFTAs. The outburst sparked outrage, but audiences were warned about this beforehand.
Social media users are weighing in on the latest BAFTA controversy and, for once, their opinions seem to align.
The incident involving Tourette’s sufferer and advocate, John Davidson, and Sinners star, Michael B. Jordan, left Hollywood shaken.
Davidson, who attended the 79th BAFTAs following various nominations for the biopic I Swear, a story of his life with Tourette’s syndrome, repeatedly shouted racial slurs at Black actors and production while at the awards ceremony.
While Jordan and co-star Delroy Lindo were presenting, Davidson could be heard shouting the N-word.
Both men seemed unshaken by the racial slur but later said that they felt let down by BAFTA and were left feeling unsettled.
“We did what we had to do,” Lindo told Vanity Fair, but the Sinners actor told the press that he wished “someone from BAFTA spoke to us afterwards.”
Tech giant Google seemed to add insult to injury by sending an “offensive notification” regarding the incident, which included the use of the “N-word,” Variety reports.
Google claims that the message was only received by a “very small subset” of app users.
The tech giant denies the use of AI to write the message.
Stars take to Instagram, X to examine BAFTAs aftermath
Hannah Beachler, who was a part of the production team for Sinners and also attended the BAFTAs, said via X that racial slurs were also “directed” at her.
“I keep trying to write about what happened at the BAFTAs, and I can’t find the words,” Beachler writes.
“The situation is almost impossible,” she adds, “but it happened three times that night.”
Beachler said those affected were offended by the remarks but understand that it is ultimately a very difficult situation to navigate, as there isn’t a clear perpetrator or victim.
However, one A-list actor went directly to Jordan’s and Lindo’s defense.
Jamie Foxx repeatedly posted on Instagram following the racist remark, showing support for the Sinners stars whilst also uplifting black voices and highlighting the importance of the civil rights movement.
While Foxx didn’t reference the incident directly, the following posts include images of Lindo and Jordan with the caption, “You good? We good? We blessed…say less…”
Foxx also said that Davidson “meant that sh*t” and that “out of all of the words, you could've said Tourette’s makes you say that?” in response to a post found by Complex.
While Hollywood was resolute in its belief that Davidson’s tics were ultimately unacceptable, social media users didn’t see the incident as black and white.
Social media users’ reactions to BAFTAs' “N-word” situation
One X user described this incident as an “example of competing rights” as Davidson had every right to attend the BAFTAs, while Jordan and Lindo also have the right to be protected from racist remarks.
Indiay Sabel, who has conducted interviews with actors such as Ethan Hawke and Amanda Seyfried, told her TikTok audience that she was actually at the event and provided essential context.
Sabel was in the audience when Davidson said the derogatory remark, and she acknowledged that while this was an “awkward” moment, the audience had been briefed on Davidson’s condition beforehand.
While many users found this situation impossible, others believe it sheds light on the performative, hypocritical nature of Hollywood.
“They (Hollywood) celebrate a film portraying a man living with Tourette’s, but when his real-life Tourette’s inconveniences their glitzy evening, he’s made to feel so terrible that he feels like he has to leave early,” said one X user.
Another user noted that the BAFTA situation seems to be a form of dramatic irony, as the audience is acutely aware of the irony that those involved don’t seem to grasp.
The reason for Davidson’s attendance was due his biopic, which he helped produce, was up for various nominations that night.
The X user makes the point that the biopic is, in itself, a form of advocacy and is designed to show “how Tourette’s is so misunderstood and vilified.”
However, when Tourette’s rears its head in public, it makes people uncomfortable, which alone demonstrates the major stigma still attached to the syndrome.
Who is John Davidson?
John Davidson (MBE) is a Scottish Tourette’s activist who has been raising awareness of Tourette’s syndrome since he was a teenager.
At 15, he was the subject of a 1989 documentary that examined his life with Tourette’s, a syndrome previously described as “wild madness.”
Davidson has a rarer form of Tourette’s syndrome called coprolalia, which causes outbursts that often contain profanity or derogatory comments.
Coprolalia affects 10 to 30 percent of people with the condition, Davidson told Variety in an interview following the incident.
This particular symptom has “nothing to do with what I think, feel, or believe,” Davidson said, “it’s an involuntary neurological misfire.”
This isn’t the first time Davidson has encountered an incident like this.
When being awarded his MBE by the late Queen Elizabeth II, Davidson reportedly shouted “F*ck the Queen” upon meeting her.
