Well, it’s happened. The cancel culture mob has come for former ESPN writer and host Jemele Hill or did it? Not really because she hasn’t been fired, but she got ensnared in it after going after Barstool Sports. Hill commented on some old videos of David Portnoy, “el Pres,” one of which is where he took jabs at former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, saying he looked like someone who could be in ISIS. Portnoy’s other antics have been aired as well, but the Barstool founder is defiant, claiming that he’s “uncancellable,” noting that his enemies have tried to get rid of him for two decades and failed (via Variety):
The Barstool videos have been circulated by the Resist Programming account on Twitter in the past several days, gaining wider attention after The Atlantic contributing writer Jemele Hill tweeted them on Sunday, writing, “This is terrible, but then again, consider the source.”
In a 2016 segment about former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick kneeling during the national anthem, Portnoy says, “So I’m going to say something that’s racist,” explaining he thought Kaepernick was “an ISIS guy… Throw a head wrap on this guy, he’s a terrorist.” Portnoy adds, “He looks like a Bin Laden. That’s not racist.” Barstool’s Kevn “KFC” Clancy comments that Kaepernick “is not really that Black… I don’t think he speaks for Black people.”
[…]
Portnoy, in a response to Hill on Sunday night, complained, “What’s terrible is altering and cutting up a comedy sites video and giving no other context.”
In a different clip Portnoy posted from that same 2016 segment, he says about Kaepernick, “He just thinks Black are people are being treated unfairly, so he’s making a moral stand. Fine, I didn’t know he was Black… I don’t hate him — I hated him a lot more when I thought he was a terrorist.”
Portnoy also tweeted links to Barstool Sports content that was supportive of Kaepernick, including “Colin Kaepernick Refused to Stand During the Anthem and That’s Ok” and “If You Are Mad That Nike Pulled Their Betsy Ross Flag Sneakers Because Colin Kaepernick Complained About Them Then You Have a Big Dump in Your Pants” (in which Portnoy writes, “I could see how if I were black I wouldn’t love seeing a flag parading around from the colonial era when this country allowed slavery”).
Hill’s jab led to Portnoy retweeting a screenshot of an old tweet from her, where she made a problematic joke about trans people. She was referencing Manny Ramirez doping fiasco (via Fox News):
After retweeting screenshots of Barstool's coverage defending Kaepernick over the years, Portnoy retaliated by retweeting a screenshot from a 2009 tweet written by Hill which was labeled "transphobic" by the Twitter user.
"My fb friends are calling him 'Manny the Tranny'... so inappropriate and hilarious," Hill wrote.
Well, by the Left’s rules, Hill is canceled, right? No. Not really—she’s progressive so the rules don’t apply. The Left can make racist and apparently transphobic quips, but everyone else who’s guilty deserves decapitation. It’s a draw here. Barstool Sports and Portnoy won’t be canceled, and neither will Hill, but #CancelJemele got going and while she may have suffered being dragged over social media, she survived. A great many have not been so fortunate.
Let me address this. I saw some folks circulating this tweet from 2009 in my TL after I criticized Barstool’s Dave Portnoy for a racist skit that went viral yesterday. Let me explain why I kept this tweet up when it was brought to my attention: https://t.co/Fdlwd2qF9u
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) June 29, 2020
For context, the tweet was in reference to Manny Ramirez testing positive for the woman’s fertility drug, gonadotropin. It was wholly ignorant, dumb, and offensive. I am ashamed that I was so uneducated about trans issues at the time. I stand with this community firmly today.
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) June 29, 2020
I kept the tweet up because I welcomed the opportunity to apologize and to show growth. See, unlike some people, I’m not defensive about my moments of failure. I learn from them and own it.
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) June 29, 2020
I don’t care about Dave Portnoy or any of the other Barstool sycophants RT’ing this into my TL, like it’s some gotcha moment. I care about the trans community I belittled and offended. If they don’t see me as an ally because of this, it’s my job to show them that I am.
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) June 29, 2020
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