Source: twitter.com
It looks like Megyn Kelly is not yet off the hook when it comes to her blackface comments even though she’s already apologized. In fact, her fellow NBC family members are the ones pushing her to release a better apology to the ‘people of color around the country.’
The one that seems the most unhappy with Megyn’s view that on Halloween, blackface should be Okay as long as it’s part of a costume, is Al Roker!
The Today Show host addressed the situation along with Savannah Guthrie and Craig Melvin today and Al seemed really upset.
‘The fact is, while she apologized to the staff, she owes a bigger apology to folks of color around the country,’ the man said.
Al Roker on Megyn Kelly’s blackface apology: “While she apologized to the staff, she owes a bigger apology to folks of color around the country because this is a history going back to the 1830s. Minstrel shows to demean and denigrate a race wasn’t right.” pic.twitter.com/nt7YhCRU18
— Keith Boykin (@keithboykin) October 24, 2018
‘This is history going back to the 1830s minstrel shows to demean and to denigrate a race. It was not right. I am old enough to have lived through Amos ‘n’ Andy, where you had people in blackface playing two black characters, magnifying the worst stereotypes about black men—and that is what the problem is. That is what the issue is.’
Melvin went on to say that Megyn’s remarks were ‘stupid’ and ‘indenfensible.‘
As for Guthrie, she appeared to be really uncomfortable about the whole thing and said very little.
‘It is uncomfortable, obviously, because Megyn is a colleague at NBC News,’ she stated.
Morgan Radford called it a ‘learning moment’ for Kelly but also for the audience because it ‘really gifted us the opportunity to have this conversation and a public discourse. We now have the courage and we have the platform to have conversations like this, even when they’re uncomfortable because we can see they’re still necessary.’
As you know, Kelly has already apologized to the staff at NBC via an internal email.
‘One of the wonderful things about my job is that I get the chance to express and hear a lot of opinions. Today is one of the days when listening carefully to other points of view, including from friends and colleagues, is leading me to rethink my own views. I realize that such behavior is indeed wrong, and I’m sorry,’ the TV personality wrote.
"I want to begin with two words, I'm sorry..The country feels so divided and I have no wish to add to that pain and offense. I believe this is a time for more understanding, more love, more sensitivity and honor..Thank you for listening and for helping me listen too." Megyn Kelly pic.twitter.com/6hHrvZLNvK
— Megyn Kelly TODAY (@MegynTODAY) October 24, 2018
She added that ‘The history of blackface in our culture is abhorrent; the wounds too deep. I’ve never been a ‘pc’ kind of person — but I understand that we do need to be more sensitive in this day and age.
Earlier today, she apologized again, this time publicly on her show, saying in part: ‘I want to begin with two words: I’m sorry. You may’ve heard that yesterday we had a conversation about political correctness and Halloween costumes… I defended the idea, saying that as long it was respectful and part of a Halloween costume, it seemed OK. Well, I was wrong, and I’m sorry.’
