Stephen A. Smith Delves Into Controversy Again: This Time About Mike Brown And Ferguson Protests
Stephen A. Smith, sports commentator and television host, is under fire again, this time for his controversial commentary on the case of Michael Brown, who was unarmed when shot by a police officer in Ferguson, MO. Smith started out with relatively low-level controversial comments, suggesting that everyone should “calm down” and decrying looters and vandals.
From there, however, he seemed to imply that protesters were deserving of the police response, and that the community is hurting itself.
On Thursday, President Obama spoke about the uproar in Ferguson, where eyewitness reports and police reports clash regarding exactly what is going on, with claims of riots and Molotov cocktails from one side, and of unprompted tear gas and stun grenades from the other. According to Time, the president said that there is no excuse for violence against either police or peaceful protesters, and called for transparency and justice.
On Friday, Smith started discussing the matter on his Twitter account:
Y’all better go someplace with y’all nonsense. Brown was shot. The officer needs to be pay. But I agree with POTUS. All sides needed 2 chill
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) August 15, 2014
He started with a simple agreement with the president, saying that violence needs to end, no matter who is carrying it out. From there, though, Smith went downhill, according to followers:
No it was not, @PhilipMurphy95. I know he was unarmed and shot. I know the protestors were peaceful. But why the hell did POTUS speak up???
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) August 15, 2014
As with the “women, don’t provoke men to violence” case that got Smith suspended from ESPN for a week last month, the commentator kept digging his heels in deeper.
Just because someone is asking you not to look or vandalize, @24Librascales, doesn’t mean you’re being asked not to do anything.
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) August 15, 2014
Folks are ridiculous, @kingjc1987. I echo POTUS and I’m an Uncle Tom. Why? B/c I don’t want US further harming ourselves. I’m done, man!
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) August 15, 2014
After briefly fielding a slew of responses from Twitter users who told Smith he was wrong, that being quiet and accepting injustice never changed anything, and that police reports of protester violence had been disputed, the commentator dropped the subject, announcing that when his Sirius radio station goes live, he promises even more controversy:
I’m going to leave it like this: my show on SiriusXM MadDog radio debuts Sept.2nd. I’ll have MORE time to get into stuff like
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) August 15, 2014
This. Y ‘all don’t even know what y’all are in for. I can’t wait. We’ll see how much stuff folks have to say then. Y’all don’t even know!
— Stephen A Smith (@stephenasmith) August 15, 2014
It is noteworthy that USA Today reports that when the police reaction to protests relaxed and demilitarized, protests became much calmer, too.
Do you think Stephen A. Smith overstepped his bounds by telling people who are feeling pangs of injustice to “calm down”?
