Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Torches Will Smith For Slapping Chris Rock At Oscars

By now, the entire world knows that Will Smith rushed the stage at the Oscars on Sunday night and slapped Chris Rock in the face after the comedian made a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith.

NBA legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is now firing off  Smith by saying that he “did a lot more damage than just to Rock’s face.” In case you missed the slap, you can check it out below, but we must warn you that it does include some profanity. 

Backstory: Internet Erupts After Will Smith Slaps Chris Rock At The Oscars

Abdul-Jabbar Fires Off At Smith

Abdul-Jabbar penned an entire blog post about this incident that he titled “Will Smith Did a Bad, Bad Thing,” and in it, he wrote that “with a single petulant blow, (Smith) advocated violence, diminished women, insulted the entertainment industry, and perpetuated stereotypes about the Black community.” 

While Abdul-Jabbar found Smith to be “charming, sincere, and funny” during their few interactions, he’s deeply disturbed by the damage he feels that the former “Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air” star has done with his violence.

“One of the main talking points from those supporting the systemic racism in America is characterizing Blacks as more prone to violence and less able to control their emotions,” Abdul-Jabbar wrote. 

“Smith just gave comfort to the enemy by providing them with the perfect optics they were dreaming of,” he added. “Many will be reinvigorated to continue their campaign to marginalize African Americans and others through voter suppression campaign.”

Backstory: Whoopi Goldberg Says Race Is Real Reason Will Smith Wasn’t Removed From Oscars After Smacking Will Smith

Here’s What Was Even ‘Worse’ Than The Slap

Smith ended up winning an Oscar for Best Actor for his work in King Richard, but Abdul-Jabbar found his “tearful, self-serving acceptance speech” to be even “worse.” 

“The speech was about justifying his violence,” he said. “Those who protect don’t brag about it in front of 15 million people. They just do it and shut up. You don’t do it as a movie promotion claiming how you’re like the character you just won an award portraying.”

In contrast, Abdul-Jabbar took a moment to praise Rock for the “grace and maturity” he showed with how he handled the slap. Watch more of this in the video below.

Related: O.J. Simpson Defends Will Smith Slapping Chris Rock At Oscars – ‘I Understood The Feeling’

Young Boys Will Now Be More ‘Prone’ To Violence

“Young boys — especially Black boys — watching their movie idol not just hit another man over a joke, but then justify it as him being a superhero-like protector, are now much more prone to follow in his childish footsteps,” he said. 

“Perhaps the saddest confirmation of this is the tweet from Smith’s child Jaden: ‘And That’s How We Do It,'” Abdul-Jabbar stated, referring to a tweet from Smith’s son Jaden that has been “liked” over one million times.

The Academy is reportedly meeting today to decide how to handle what Smith did, and it’s been said that stripping him of his Oscar is not off the table.

Abdul-Jabbar has one of the best and most thought-provoking celebrity responses to this horrific act of violence that was witnessed by millions.