Jussie Smollett: Victim to Villain

Throughout the last few days, the name Jussie Smollett has been on every major news platform with several different opinions on the outcome of his case. Toward the end of January, the Chicago Police Department opened a hate crime investigation following the report filed by the Empire celebrity. Smollett claimed that two men bearing Trump administration merchandise assaulted him outside of his home, alluding to lynchings via the rope they put around his neck, and the “chemical” substances they allegedly doused him with. It was also said that they had shouted racial and homophobic slurs in addition to phrases such as “this is MAGA country.” The Chicago Police responded by launching an investigation to find the aggressors and bring them to justice. It wasn’t until security cameras, both belonging to the city and private homes, showed little to nothing at all occurring at the time and location of the attack that police, prosecutors, and the public began to doubt the legitimacy of such an outrageous hate crime.

The security cameras showed two gentlemen walking along the street after hailing a cab. The men were tracked down and questioned by police. The two men were identified as coworkers on the set of Empire and brothers, Ola and Abel Osundairo. When questioned by police about their presence there that night, they denied having anything to do with it until threatened with charges or sentences. It quickly came to light after that the Osundairo brothers were paid $3,500 by Smollett to stage an attack. Charles Barkley, a retired NBA player, commented on this by saying something along the lines of, “if you’re going to break the law, don’t write a check.”

The proof to back up such a callous accusation has been that no attack was seen on any camera, and  Smollett was on the phone with the brothers for quite some time before and after the supposed incident. When the brothers’ home was searched, rope and two masks were found, lining up with Smollett’s story. With this evidence put in place, such an accusation doesn’t seem callous at all. One would ask why anyone would want to stage anything as heinous as an allusion to lynching, as it’s not very easy to understand. It’s claimed that Smollett was upset with his current pay grade, roughly $20,000 an episode, and wanted to boost his relevance in order to stake claim to a higher wage. This could quite possibly be the worst raise negotiation in modern history. With that truth out in the public sphere, the sympathy that arose for Smollett has melted into outrage. Superintendent of the Chicago Police Department, Eddie Johnson, took note of the event and said, “I’m left hanging my head and asking why… would anyone… use the symbolism of a noose to make false accusations? How could someone look at the hatred and suffering… and see an opportunity to manipulate that symbol to further his own public profile?”

Within the time that the police department was focused on the false allegations filed by Smollett, Chicago was faced with roughly eighteen homicides and numerous shootings. These cases received little attention because the Smollett scandal took the media by storm. Potential Democratic Senators Kamala Harris and Corey Booker, among others, have displayed their disgust with such an act of dangerous ambition. It’s a sad day when one is willing to extort the hideous blot that racism and hate related violence has placed on the country’s timeline because they weren’t satisfied with the thousands of dollars that they were making or their relevance in the papers. More importantly, incidents such as this make it more difficult for actual victims to receive the assistance that they need both in terms of moral support and police investigation. Smollett’s ignorance has hurt more than just his career. After being fired from the show, he has made it that much harder for those experiencing real hate to come out about their experiences, and the crimes that occurred while the media was focused on a tabloid cover will never get the attention they were due. Among those cases virtually ignored was that of a one-year old boy, Dejon Irving, who was shot in the head whilst sitting in his family’s car and who now is currently on life support.

Jussie Smollett has capitalized off of hatred and the racial divide polarizing the country and lacks the sympathy given to him by the global population that he once had in spades. Such acts should be discouraged in any form possible, and it is hopeful that the courts will rule in the favor of whatever evidence is presented so that justice can be achieved. Whether or not Jussie Smollett will be sentenced to the maximum of three years for disorderly conduct (filing a false police report) has yet to be determined.