Actor Jamie Foxx Apologizes After Sharing Instagram Post Widely Deemed Antisemitic
Actor and singer Jamie Foxx apologized on Saturday for an Instagram post to his nearly 17 million followers over the weekend which was widely condemned as antisemitic.
The post from Friday, which the Django Unchained star has since deleted, said: “They killed this dude named Jesus … what do you think they’ll do to you???! #fakefriends #fakelove.” The post sparked outrage after some thought “they” referred to Jewish people and that the post was promoting the antisemitic blood libel that Jews were responsible for the death of Jesus.
“I condemn this shameful, dangerous antisemitism posted by Jamie Foxx,” wrote StandWithUs CEO Roz Rothstein in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. “Violence by racists against minorities always begins with words, just like this: Jamie Foxx says ‘they killed this dude name Jesus’ in post echoing antisemitic tropes.”
Before Foxx’s post was removed, actress Jennifer Aniston was among those who “liked” the post, which resulted in backlash from her fans. She later released a statement on late Friday, saying in a post on her Instagram Story that she did not intend on liking the message. She added: “This really makes me sick … I do NOT support any form of antisemitism. And I truly don’t tolerate HATE of any kind. Period.”
On Saturday, Foxx, 55, responded to the outrage and issued a statement in an Instagram post.
“I want to apologize to the Jewish community and everyone who was offended by my post. I now know my choice of words have caused offense and I’m sorry. That was never my intent,” the Oscar winner wrote. “To clarify, I was betrayed by a fake friend and that’s what I meant with ‘they’ not anything more. I only have love in my heart for everyone. I love and support the Jewish community. My deepest apologies to anyone who was offended.”
Foxx also reposted a message from Jewish restaurateur and podcast host Mark Birnbaum on his Instagram Story, which said: “As a close friend for 20 years @iamjamiefoxx is the most inclusive non antisemetic [sic] person out there. He’s got nothing but love for everyone including us Jews. Let’s move onto the next nonsensical story of the day.”
Others on social media who came to Foxx’s defense explained that the phrase used by the Blame It singer is a common Black colloquialism used to describe betrayal from a person close to you since the biblical figure Judas, a disciple and one of Jesus’ 12 apostles, betrayed Jesus in a way that led to the latter’s death.
Rothstein thanked Foxx for his apology and wrote in a post on X, “people need to be MUCH more careful with their words—words can and have resulted in violence and murder. Thank you Jamie, for clarifying.”
The American Jewish Committee added: “The deicide charge, falsely implicating Jews in Jesus’ death, has fueled antisemitic hatred for centuries. Jamie Foxx did the right thing by apologizing for this statement. It is important for everyone, including Foxx’s millions of followers, to know why his post was harmful.”
Others on social media who were still disappointed in Foxx’s actions urged him to be more cognizant of his choice of words in the future.
Jewish writer Aviva Klompas said, “great harm has been done. An old trope revived. Another excuse to attack Jews. @iamjamiefoxx to make right you need to help people understand that when they have a grievance with a person, they shouldn’t attack an entire people.”
Foxx’s Instagram post comes after he experienced a medical complication that required hospitalization in April. Foxx has yet to share details about his illness, saying in a video message on July 22 that he wants to maintain his privacy about the subject.
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