2019 was off to a confusing and controversial start with the alleged racist and homophobic attack of “Empire” star, Jussie Smollett.
A brief recap – Smollett reported to Chicago police that he was attacked by two masked assailants who beat him, yelled racist and homophobic slurs at him, tied a noose around his neck and poured an unknown chemical substance on him back in January of this year. He added at a later date that the aggressors also yelled “this is MAGA country,” but that was only the beginning of Smollett’s inconsistencies. A threatening letter was later released by TMZ which consisted of cut up letters, sent to the Empire studio directly. There was no video of the assault itself, but police eventually honed in on two Nigerian brothers as possible suspects. The interview with these brothers revealed that they were allegedly paid by Smollett for the attack, suggesting that the “Empire” star set up an elaborate hoax.
On February 20th, a felony disorderly charge was filed against Smollett for filing a false police report and the Chicago Police announced he was an official suspect in a criminal investigation.
The following day the celebrity turned himself in to police and was ordered to surrender his passport, with a bond of $100,000. Police also released that the Nigerian brothers were paid $3,500 by Smollett to attack him back in January because of his dissatisfaction with his salary. Several sources theorize that Fox’s lack of action against the staged letter sent to Smollett led to the star’s escalation to the fake attack. On March 8th, Smollett was indicted on 16 felony counts by a grand jury and could face up to four years in prison.
Americans around the country are disappointed in the lengths Smollett went to, just to simply further his popularity and salary.
Fans of “Empire” are calling for his dismissal immediately and both African Americans and members of the LGBTQIA+ community are condemning the star for his actions.
The public will continue to keep a sharp eye out while they wait to find out the fate of “Empire” star Jussie Smollett.