Most actors and actresses I have known are not to bright, they are all about image, its their job on a level. One of my sister in laws was an actress. I remember attending a party with her where she said things that directly contradicted what she said in private to the family members. The party was with other actors and actresses. I came to the conclusion that her opinions were like clothing to her, she wore whatever fit the situation. I think most people do that.
When speaking in public one must always ask who their audience is. Mr. Smollett told a story in public, who was he speaking to. I don't think conservatives were his intended audience. Did he think he was speaking to all blacks, or all gays or even all liberals? I don't think so and certainly not after day one, most blacks and gays distrusted him from the get go. His audience was the establishment on the east and west coast, not even Chicago. Almost no blacks in Chicago believed this guy from day one. Chicago voted for Hillary by like 85%, it aint Maga Country.
Jussie is from the best places in Southern California and came from money. This man grew up in Malibu, not the hood. LOL. This kid is part of the 1%. I was going to link to Wikipedia; but, they have changed his profile in the last two days. He lived in Santa Rosa, Calabasas and Malibu, it used to say that and doesn't now. How funny. Books don't change, Wikipedia does.
When I first reported on this case I clearly stated the story was questionable; but, that we should wait a few days for things to become clearer. I specifically called out the media for lazy and inconsistent reporting. Well things have clarified and it is not looking good for Jussie. What now seems most likely is that Jussie hired two people he knew to fake the attack.
I don't think Jussie ever intended this to become as big as it did. It is the I Love Lucy show, he started with a little lie and it blew up forcing him to lie more and more to hide his original lie. A week before the "attack" Jussie received a letter at the studio saying MAGA and that he should die. That letter was a hoax. How do we know this, the police retrieved the magazine from the home of the two guys that was used to make the letter. Now Jussie is refusing to come in to the police to answer questions and has hired a firm that deals with Public Relations crisis. Remember this though, Jussie did not want to file a police report and has not sought charges against the two brothers he says attacked him. Jussie and his people would probably like to cut a deal with the two brothers, money for saying they did it of their own accord; but, the cops are hiding the guys until after the grand jury has Jussie testify.
For their part, the media is attempting to undo their past. They are saying it is all Jussie's fault, they threw him under the bus so fast and are now saying people who are true victims will be disbelieved while still saying believe all victims, pick one. This is the same media that uncritically believes every anti-Trump rumor as soon as it is said. This is the same media that reports as fact Trump-Russia collusion with zero evidence. The media is no longer reporters, they have become nothing more than gossip columnists with a political agenda.
I want to talk about Jussie's back ground to offer a possible explanation for his actions. Jussie's father is white and his mother is black. He grew up in the affluent beach community of Santa Rosa then moved to the affluent community of Calabasas and then moved to the very wealthy community of Malibu. By age 10 he was already acting in movies.. This is a wealthy kid who grew up spoiled and in the media. This guy has never experienced racism in his life, he has benefitted from Hollywood. A few years ago he decided to get political and began attending black rallies and hanging out with black activists; but, he has zero street cred. The truth is I have more credibility in the black community than this guy does because I worked with black community groups and created jobs for people in south central.
Many people think Jussie did this to vilify Trump supporters because he does hate Trump. Some people believe this was just a publicity stunt that got out of control. I think he did it to be accepted in the black community as genuine. What aspect of his story did he push in his interview on television and at his concert, he talked about how he fought back, how he was strong and how he couldn't be kept down. Jussie's dad is white; but, Jussie identifies as black. He desperately wants to be accepted by the black community and isn't because he grew up wealthy and privileged. This hoax was a cry for help, I believe he wants to be accepted by a group rather than for himself. He wanted to be accepted by the black community and his wealth privilege gets in the way. He has nothing in common with the average person be they white, black or gay. He grew up wealthy and privileged, a child actor. He has almost nothing in common with the average person. I do not excuse his actions, I am merely attempting to understand his reasons.
The black community is turning on him, the gay community is turning on him, the media is turning on him and conservatives are laughing at him. The guy is a idiot that made a dick move that he will pay for. The smart move would be to come clean; but, like Lucy he has travelled too far down the road. If he had real courage, he would cop to the fact that he lied; but, that is tough road to hoe. He is now surrounded by people telling him how to spin it and the lies will bury him. Too bad, only he can stop it before it ends as it will.
God gives us grace and thankfully so, we all need it. God says we should forgive others; but, it usually requires repentance and not spin. I think Jussie's fear and all those around him telling him how to spin and lie better will get in the way of his owning up to what he did and committing himself to change.