“The View” got nasty.
During Monday’s episode of “The View,” co-host Whoopi Goldberg defended Janet Jackson’s false comments about Vice President Kamala Karris.
In an interview with The Guardian published on Saturday, Jackson, 58, falsely said about Vice President Harris, “She’s not Black. That’s what I heard. That she’s Indian. [Harris’] father’s white. That’s what I was told. I mean, I haven’t watched the news in a few days. I was told that they discovered her father was white.”
Goldberg asked critics to give the “Nasty” singer “a little grace.” But, not all of her fellow “The View” panelists agreed.
Sunny Hostin said she “doesn’t want to give it this much air.”
Alyssa Farah Griffin said about Jackson, “My guess is she’s not looking at great sources of media.”
Co-host Ana Navarro commented that Jackson was “spreading misinformation” and that the pop star “has a phone,” meaning she can look up accurate information.
“I think Janet Jackson, like every other American — whether you’re a celebrity or not — has a right to endorse, support or not support whomever they want,” Navarro added.
“She’s got every right to not like Kamala Harris if she doesn’t want to. What she did was spread misinformation, and I think it’s very irresponsible when you have a platform the way Janet Jackson does to use that platform carelessly.”
But, Goldberg cut in to disagree.
“Hold on, hold on, yeah she’s got a phone – Janet Jackson is not a political animal. She’s a musician, her life is doing this, and she’s mourning her brother,” said Goldberg, referring to Tito Jackson’s recent death at age 70 of an apparent heart attack.
Goldberg added, “Sometimes I’ve said stuff and I was wrong, but people want you to say something right away. But when people are coming at you saying, ‘hey, you’re dumb, you don’t know…’ you know, you don’t want to answer people and it is a pain in the butt, I have to tell you.”
To make the story stranger a man named Mo Elmasri, claiming to Jackson’s manager, gave a statement to Buzzfeed that read: “She deeply respects Vice President Kamala Harris and her accomplishments as a Black and Indian woman. Janet apologizes for any confusion caused and acknowledges the importance of accurate representation in public discourse.”
But, Jackson’s management told Variety that the statement didn’t come from a real Jackson rep who was authorized to speak for the superstar.
“The View” co-host Sara Haines chimed in, saying, “The fastest-growing group in this country is multiracial individuals, not bi, multiracial individuals so asking people, ‘what are you?’”
She added, “My biracial friends always struggled that they weren’t white enough or they weren’t Black enough and they were always left in the middle The middle is where the world is headed and so we need to be more open about people’s identities and what they identify as and have some grace.”
The “Sister Act” actress continued to defend Jackson.
“Sometimes people get it wrong, and they’re wrong,” said Goldberg.
“They made a mistake, they were wrong, it happens [and] anybody who says it doesn’t happen to every one of us, multiracial or not, we all do it. So, a little grace for the girl, a little grace for the girl, alright?”
