Source: Jason Merritt / Getty
It’s not a secret that Charlamagne tha God is a polarizing public figure.
While some folks love him, some can’t stand him and some are on the fence. And then there are the controversies, the perceived sexism and recent accusations of transphobia. Either way, it cannot denied that he continues to be an influential force in Black America.
Well, the popular radio personality is clearing the air and opening up about some of the biggest missteps and regrets of the past year. In a recent interview with The Grio, The Breakfast Club star spoke in detail about his infamous Tweet about Black women and conservative pundit Tomi Lahren.
READ THIS: Charlamagne Rips Ignorant Conservative Host Tomi Lahren To Shreds In Heated Debate
Remember back in December after Lahren was a guest on his show, Charlamagne set the Internet ablaze when he Tweeted” “Would be dope if a young black or Hispanic ‘WOKE’ woman used social media to create a Platform to be a voice like Tomi Lahren did.”
https://twitter.com/cthagod/status/806292360346865664
https://twitter.com/cthagod/status/806292514659569664
Now doing some reflection, he admits that “every conversation shouldn’t be had via social media.”
“I just think it was a bad time to have that conversation. When I posted that on social media, I was really coming from a genuine place. Because in my mind, I’m sitting there thinking, I watch us on social media all the time and we make “Scandal” trend every week and “How To Get Away With Murder” and “Insecure.” Whenever Black women and women of color get together, they get us out the paint. They can bring anybody down via social media. So I’m like why can’t we lift our people up. All Tomi got is infrastructure. I know people talk about “The Blaze” but “The Blaze” ain’t sh*t” he explains.
He also stressed that what he was just trying to express that he wanted for Black women to have that same type of platform to counter what Lahren is putting out in the world.
“I was speaking strictly infrastructure. I don’t want any of my sisters to be like Tomi Lahren. You all are smarter, sharper, more articulate, brilliant so why would I want y’all to be like her? I was simply talking infrastructure. I would never take back that tweet because it started a productive dialogue and that’s the night I met Angela Rye. That’s family. That’s just one of those people I wish I knew my whole life. For me [and] my wife, that’s our sister. She’s absolutely [an example]. I got two Black daughters.”
Source: Todd Williamson / Getty/Lil Duval
When it comes to his regrets, he looks to an interview with Lil Duval this past July where the comedian joked about killing transgender women who may have tricked him about their gender identity.
As we previously reported, after calling trans women “boys” to much laughter from Charlamagne and his co-hosts Angela Yee and DJ Envy, Lil Duval said “I don’t care. She dying. You manipulated me…In my mind I’m gay now.”
READ THIS: #BoycottBreakfastClub Trends After Lil Duval Jokes About Murdering Trans Women
Looking back at the cringeworthy moment that sparked rage and the trending hashtag #BoycottBreakfastClub, Charlamagne says he wished he would have edited that portion of the conversation out given that it wasn’t “productive.”
“I don’t mind having an uncomfortable conversation if those uncomfortable conversations can lead to a bigger dialogue and help us get to a better understanding of whatever it is we are discussing. But in that case, it wasn’t beneficial to anybody. It wasn’t beneficial to The Breakfast Club, it wasn’t beneficial to Lil DuvaI and most importantly, it wasn’t beneficial to the transgender community. So, what was the point?” he asks.
Instead, he said it could have been a “healthy dialogue about disclosure.”
“Should someone disclose what they were born as. That probably could have been, maybe a healthy conversation. But other than that, it was just pointless. Maybe because Duval is my friend and I know him and I know that he didn’t mean that with malicious intent, maybe I didn’t take it as serious as I should have…We can’t sit around and act like we’re all not living amongst each other. That’s not the way America works. And at the end of the day, she’s still Black to me. I’m not here for anybody being oppressed at all.”
Watch the entire interview below:
BEAUTIES: Is this actual personal growth or is Charlamagne just paying us lip service?
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