Oscars, anyone watching?

Here is a link to the full VIDEO of Will & Chris

Do we know for a fact that Chris Rock knew about her alopecia?

I'm sure the Smith's think every detail of their lives is of interest to everyone...but I doubt that's really the case.
We've seen other black women at awards shows either bald or with very short hair, and they've always looked stunning and there's also women of all different races who have various wigs, extensions, weaves etc...it's reasonable to assume at an awards show those varying hairstyles are fashion statements and not due to (non life threatening) illness.


I'm sure Will & Jada combined make enough for her to have thousands of wigs if she wants them. It's really not a case of "poor Jada's insurance won't pay for her wig"...that's a long bow to draw here.
Chris Rock wasn't commenting on an ordinary woman in the street. These are mega famous mega rich people at a lavish awards show to celebrate themselves...lets not lose sight of that.

It goes hand in hand either the mounds and mounds of disrespect men are showing against women.

It needs to stop.

Absolutely agree and absolutely did not lose sight of this. I have dealt with Alopecia since I was 18 years old, I have thought about it a lot in my life.  Hahaha.  . I guess mine were more general comments , I should have kept my focus on just the Oscar situation.

I apologize, I was not reading your comment about bald men in reference to the rich and famous and award shows but just about bald jokes in general. Obviously I should  have, as it was on the Oscar thread, but personal experiences sometimes redirects your focus.  The stigma of bald women to bald men is very different and society’s view and obsession with women and hair is huge.  I also think that he had no reason to make any ruckus over the joke on air.  I got drawn into the whole thread because of the Alopecia, the Oscar part is just fluff.  😉😄

I’m not sure how you got that out of her comments. She was obviously speaking about the disrespect men show women, the part you didn’t include in your quoted post…not stopping comedy in general. I’m certain comedians are capable of being funny and respectful to women. 

Exactly!  I don't condone what Will Smith did but this isn't the first time Chris Rock has taken a pot shot of Jada. It still doesn't make WS actions acceptable but people snap. It also makes Chris Rock a crass persons for doing what he did. 

The reference to the "GI Jane" was far more than just the fact that she had shaved her head because of her Alopecia, which was bad enough in itself - one doesn't make jokes about someone's medical conditions. The underlying general meaning of the saying/joke, and he isn't the first man to use the GI Jane joke, is that in the film "Jordan O'Neil", the first woman to undergo Navy Seal training, even outperforming many of her male counterparts  was still forced to completely hide away her femininity which included shaving her hair off, to solidify her position as a Navy Sea. It comes down to the fact that some believe that women can't compete in what is generally considered, predominantly, to be a man's world on their personal merits without changing who they are or their appearance. It was an insulting "joke" to any woman that had a similar hairstyle whether it was medically forced upon them or not.

If Chris Rock can't find enough material without having to insult women in general then IMO he's a pretty lame comedian.

Anybody else think it’s deliciously ironic that this played out on the stage of the annual masturbatory paean to Hollywood movies? Many of which have portrayed the idea of the mouthy jerk character getting his comeuppance when the handsome leading man pops him in the face?

(Variation One: long-suffering, testosterone-challenged nerdy male character instead of leading man. Way Too Popular Variation Two: either one of these trope characters do it in defense of a woman.)

In any case, audience has an “Atta, boy!” reaction and defended woman character falls for the man. Life? Art? Movies’ continued role in our f’d up gender training? Hopefully, people will see THIS reaction to outrage is not so heroic in real life - instead of just arguing about exactly HOW mouthy and jerky the mouthy jerk character was.

Again...what proof do you have that he knew it was medical condition and not a style choice?
Do you really think every person in Hollywood knows about one woman's hair loss?

I'd suggest seeking out Black women's voices, rather than Glennon Doyle's - who immediately jumped in with her take and then deleted because of the response of Black women.

Okay this whole white women need to stay out of the conversation has got to stop.

The Oscars has an international live audience. Its for EVERYONE. The assault was bad enough, but this isn't MTV awards or Hip Hop awards where the core audience is a bunch of kids and something like that would be almost expected there.

That attitude sucks and is ruining every good thing that's left. Enough with the violence.

Profoundly disagree.

We can shut up and yield the floor sometimes.

I don't know. Yes, it was bad. Yes, we can't help but react. I mean, my jaw dropped and I folded my knees straight up into my chest with gut reactions that ran the gamut.

What we can do is respect that there is a strong and valid flex from black voices. I'm trying to be quiet, listen and learn. 

Being open to criticism that may expand our world view doesn't ruin the good stuff. It brings eventual clarity to all stuff, good and bad. If my black friends are putting a hand to my arm as a gentle warning, I tend to take notice and be respectful.

On an unrelated, but tangential example,  I often with that men, white ones in particular, would take a seat and listen to women in spaces men don't belong in or understand.

Of course we can shut up and yield the floor sometimes. In this case, that shutting up would be about this particular offense - the provocation which has a distinct cultural overtone.

I still think all women should be able to join a discussion about men choosing to defend them through violence. And I think everybody should be able to join the conversation about violence as a response to insult.

Otherwise, we end up with a spreadsheet of verbal insults that deserve or don’t deserve violence in response. (And as referenced upthread, this can be applied to domestic violence, not just “Look at me defending my woman” violence.)

Thank-you!
Knowing that he definitely knew does impact my opinion.