Ava DuVernay Won’t Rush to Judgement on Jussie Smollett: ‘I Can’t Blindly Believe Chicago PD’
Director Ava DuVernay says she is withholding her judgment about Jussie Smollett following reports that Chicago police believe the “Empire” star paid two men to orchestrate a hate assault on him.
“Despite the inconsistencies, I can’t blindly believe Chicago PD,” DuVernay, who voiced support for Smollett after the attack, said on Twitter. “The department that covered up shooting Laquan McDonald over a dozen times? That operated an off-site torture facility? That one? I’ll wait. Whatever the outcome, this won’t stop me from believing others. It can’t.”
DuVernay is referring to the murder of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald at the hands of Chicago officer Jason Van Dyke in 2014. Initially, Chicago PD reported that McDonald was carrying a folding knife and walking erratically at the time he was shot, and ruled that the shooting was justified. But dash cam footage released a year later showed Van Dyke shooting McDonald while he was walking away, leading to the officer being charged with murder.
Also Read: Jussie Smollett's Attorneys Deny Attack Was a Hoax: 'He Has Now Been Further Victimized'
A federal civil rights investigation conducted by the Department of Justice found that Chicago PD fostered a culture of “excessive violence” against people of color and “poor supervision” of officers.
On Jan. 29, Smollett told Chicago police that he was assaulted by two men outside a Loews hotel, and that the two men called him “‘Empire’ f—t” and “‘Empire’ n—er'” while beating him, wrapping a rope around his neck, and covering him in bleach.
But this weekend, CNN reported that new evidence suggests that Smollett paid two bodybuilder brothers to orchestrate the attack. Smollett’s attorneys have denied such claims.
Also Read: Two Suspects in Jussie Smollett Case Under Arrest, Chicago Police Say
“As a victim of a hate crime who has cooperated with the police investigation, Jussie Smollett is angered and devastated by recent reports that the perpetrators are individuals he is familiar with,” read the statement. “He has now been further victimized by claims attributed to these alleged perpetrators that Jussie played a role in his own attack. Nothing is further from the truth and anyone claiming otherwise is lying.”
From the get-go, Donald Trump's presidency has been loaded up with scandals that have enraged his Democrat opponents and challenged the willingness of Beltway Republicans to stand by him. The growing pile of federal investigations and news reports reached a boiling point with Trump's firing of James Comey. In case you can't keep everything straight, here's what's happened so far and who in Trump's circle is being investigated.
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From NBC
Carter Page: The Washington Post reported in April that the FBI had obtained a warrant to monitor Trump's former campaign adviser as part of their Russia investigation. A dossier compiled by a former British intelligence officer and cited by House Dem Adam Schiff claimed that Page had met with Russian business executives linked to Putin during a visit to Moscow in July 2016.
Also Read: Former Trump Adviser Carter Page Was Being Monitored by FBI (Report)
From CNN
Michael Flynn: A retired three-star general, Flynn was selected as Trump's first national security adviser before he was fired in February. The dismissal came after it was discovered Flynn lied to Vice President Mike Pence about his interactions with Russian Ambassador Sergei Kislyak. The scandal surrounding Flynn deepened after the House Oversight Committee said they had reason to believe Flynn received payments from the Russian and Turkish governments.
Also Read: DC Whiplash: Prosecutors Issue Grand Jury Subpoenas to Michael Flynn’s Associates (Report)
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Conflicts of Interest: Since winning the election, ethics experts have criticized Trump for failing to provide a sufficient plan for addressing conflicts of interest between his presidency and his many business interests, whom he has handed over to his sons, Donald and Eric. The White House also faced criticism when senior adviser Kellyanne Conway promoted Ivanka Trump's merchandise on Fox News. The State Department also deleted a blog post promoting Trump's Florida estate, Mar-a-Lago. Trump has at least one lawsuit claiming he has violated the Emoluments Clause, which forbids the president from receiving foreign money through his businesses, something POTUS' critics say he can do by having foreign officials stay at his hotels.
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Jeff Sessions: After admitting he had not disclosed meetings with a Russian ambassador during the election to Congress, the former Alabama senator and current Attorney General recused himself from any investigations into Trump-Russia connections. After Comey's firing, 11 Senate Democrats, including Elizabeth Warren, asked the Justice Dept. to investigate whether Sessions had violated his recusal pledge after Trump announced he had consulted Sessions on firing the FBI director.
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Getty Images
The first four months of Trump’s presidency have been loaded with scandal
From the get-go, Donald Trump's presidency has been loaded up with scandals that have enraged his Democrat opponents and challenged the willingness of Beltway Republicans to stand by him. The growing pile of federal investigations and news reports reached a boiling point with Trump's firing of James Comey. In case you can't keep everything straight, here's what's happened so far and who in Trump's circle is being investigated.
Jussie Smollett: 'Empire' producer stands by star, Ava DuVernay weighs in
Police are now looking into new claims that the attack on "Empire" actor, Jussie Smollett, may have been staged. USA TODAY
Corrections & Clarifications: The headline of this story was edited for clarity and accuracy after publication.
In light of the recent developments in the investigation into last month's attack on Jussie Smollett, celebrities are speaking out.
Chicago police were pursuing "additional detective work" Sunday amid suspicion that a Jan. 29 attack on actor/singer Jussie Smollett may have been faked. Two brothers told investigators they were paid by the "Empire" actor to stage the attack, according to a person familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly.
Smollett’s attorneys issued a statement saying the actor would continue to cooperate with police but felt "victimized" by reports that he might have been involved in staging an attack.
Update: Everything we know about the Jussie Smollett case so far
Police pursue hoax angle: CPD investigates claims Smollett attack may have been faked
Brothers say Smollett paid them: Suspects told police they were paid to stage attack
A Twitter account for "Empire" executive producer Brett Mahoney reinforced his belief in Smollett's account Sunday night.
"I believe and stand by @JussieSmollett," the account for Mahoney tweeted. "Keep your head up."
The official Twitter account for the FOX series' writers retweeted the post.
Mahoney previously condemned Smollett's attackers in comments to USA TODAY.
“The attack on Jussie, because he is such a beloved member of our family, hurt us all very hard. Jussie is a proud, gay black man," he said. "I don’t know whether the cowards who attacked him were trying to beat the gay, the black or the pride out of him, but that’s impossible, because he’s strong. And so we’re happy that he is back at work."
"Empire" actor Jussie Smollett (Photo11: Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
More: Chicago police pursue claims Jussie Smollett attack may have been faked
Director Ava DuVernay took to Twitter to express her doubts about Chicago police.
"Despite the inconsistencies, I can’t blindly believe Chicago PD," she wrote, mentioning the department's past use of torture and the death of Laquan McDonald. "I’ll wait. Whatever the outcome, this won’t stop me from believing others. It can’t."
Later, the "Wrinkle in Time" director responded to questions from a Twitter user who believes "this case was fishy from the start."
"Yessir. I hear you. And agree," she replied. "I wrote (that there) are inconsistencies. He might have lied. He might be not have. I don’t know. But what I do know? I never believe police on general principle just ‘cause they say so. My experience, our history, makes it impossible for me to do so."
Elsewhere on Twitter, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has seemingly walked back her support of Smollett. Her Jan. 30 tweet in which she called the attack "an affront to our humanity" appears to have been deleted.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) who previously described the attack as "an attempted modern-day lynching" told reporters Sunday that he planned to withhold comment "until all the information actually comes out from on-the-record sources."
Activist and MSNBC commentator the Rev. Al Sharpton said on his program, "Politics Nation," Smollett should be held accountable if he is behind the attack.
"I among many others, when hearing of the reports, said that the reports were horrific and we should come with all that we can come with in order for us to find out what happened and the guilty should suffer the maximum," Sharpton told viewers. "I still maintain that. And, if it is found that Smollett and the gentlemen did, in some way, perpetrate something that is not true, they ought to face accountability to the maximum."
Contributing: Aamer Madhani and Bill Keveney
Smollett recounts violent attack on 'GMA': I saw the rope 'and I started screaming'
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Prada Enlists Director Ava DuVernay to Advise on “Diversity and Inclusion”
Prada is making a bold move in response to criticism that it used racist imagery in a series figurines, bag charms, and window displays last year. The Italian luxury label enlisted Selma and A Wrinkle in Time director Ava DuVernay to co-chair a new in-house group called the Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council, to “elevate voices of color within the company and the fashion industry at-large.” Alongside artist and activist Theaster Gates, DuVernay’s new duties will include helping to create internships for designers and students of color.
In December, New York-based civil rights attorney Chinyere Ezie took to social media when she was left “shaking with anger” after spotting the brand’s blackface-reminiscent “Pradamalia” characters in the window of a Prada store in New York’s SoHo neighborhood. “History cannot continue to repeat itself. Black America deserves better. And we demand better,” Ezie wrote on Facebook.
In response, Prada issued a statement that read: “The Pradamalia are fantasy charms composed of elements of the Prada oeuvre. They are imaginary creatures not intended to have any reference to the real world and certainly not blackface. Prada Group never had the intention of offending anyone and we abhor all forms of racism and racist imagery.”
Prada’s slip-up represented the first of several recent blackface gaffes in the fashion industry. Just last week, both Gucci and Katy Perry pulled products that too closely resembled blackface. In the case of Gucci, it was a sweater called the Balaclava black-knit, a $890 item with a long neck one can pull over the face and what appear to be bright, thick red lips surrounding the mouth cut-out. The brand’s creative director later explained that it was meant to be an homage to performance artist Leigh Bowery.
Still, Oscar-nominated director Spike Lee announced last week that he’ll no longer wear Prada or Gucci until the brands “hire some black designers.” He was joined in this effort to start a boycott of both brands by rapper T.I., a big fan (and customer) of Gucci, Soulja Boy, Waka Flocka Flame, and Russell Simmons.
Will there now be a “DuVernay test”—or racial diversity test—in the fashion industry? The term was coined by New York Times film critic Manohla Dargis in early 2016, in a review of that year’s Sundance Film Fest. And DuVernay quickly embraced it: the test can only be passed if a film or TV show’s African-American characters have “fully realized lives, rather than serving as scenery.” The fashion industry could apparently use some help.
RELATED: Amid Boycott Threats, Gucci’s Creative Director Explains That Blackface Sweater
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