Tom Hanks's Son Won't Give Up the N-Word Without a Fight
Chet Haze is calling in his Hood Pass after getting dragged for using the n-word on Instagram yesterday.
Rather than send out a carefully worded apology (written by his dad Tom Hanks's publicist) to those he offended with his fast and loose use of the loaded term yesterday, Chet Haze is doubling down and fighting for his right to say the n-word. Evoking the Constitution, white privilege and the spirit of hip hop (which "isn't about race," according to him), Chet posted a lengthy defense of his language to social media.
"If I say the word n***a I say it amongst people I love and who love me. If I say “f**k yall hatin a** n****z” it’s because that’s really how I felt at the time," he began.
"I don’t accept society getting to decide what ANYBODY can or can’t say. That’s something we call FREE SPEECH," he continues. "Now I understand the older generation who grew up in the Jim Crowe [sic] era might have strong feelings against this. And that’s understandable... But what I’m saying is this is 2015... And even tho we are still far from where we need to be and Black people are still being literally KILLED by a RACIST and f****d up system... We have also reached a point where the word can no longer have a negative connotation if we so choose."
He doesn't stop there.
"Who is to say only Black people can use it? The way I see it, it’s a word that unifies the culture of HIP-HOP across ALL RACES, which is actually kind of a beautiful thing," he says, adding that the word "can be used out of camaraderie and love, not just exclusively for Black people."
He ends the rant with a few platitudes about living his life and "one love."
Well, guess Chet knows better than Eminem, Jennifer Lopez and all the other superstars of hip hop and pop who have opted out of using the word out of respect for its connotation. Click here to watch his Instagram video.
(Photo: Janet Mayer / Splash News)
