A writer for the sports blog Deadspin was skewered online after doubling down on his accusation that a child wore “blackface” to a Kansas City Chiefs game.
The small boy wore an American Indian headdress and painted half his face red and the other half black at Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders in Nevada.
Of course. Also, though it is sometimes offensive, there's nothing inherently wrong with "blackface." (Just ask Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Billy Crystal, Robert Downey Jr., Sarah Silverman, Dan Aykroyd, John Slattery, et al.!) https://t.co/ALZr3xiMGm
— Michael Knowles (@michaeljknowles) November 28, 2023
Bruh. This kid is like 12. I know you idiots are obsessed with calling everyone racist but perhaps he was just honoring his favorite team?? https://t.co/ol8GRCkHa6 pic.twitter.com/jETWc4Pcm6
— Olivia Rondeau 🇺🇸 (@rondeaulivia) November 28, 2023
Deadspin senior writer Carron Phillips spotted the child and penned an article on Monday calling on the NFL to “speak out against” the young fan.
“It takes a lot to disrespect two groups of people at once. But on Sunday afternoon in Las Vegas, a Kansas City Chiefs fan found a way to hate Black people and the Native Americans at the same time,” Phillips wrote.
Phillips also threw a barb at the NFL, saying the league has “relentlessly participated in prejudice” and should have already changed the Chiefs’ name.
“This is what happens when you ban books, stand against Critical Race Theory, and try to erase centuries of hate,” Phillips wrote.
Later in the day on Monday, Phillips doubled down on his accusation.
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“For the idiots in my mentions who are treating this as some harmless act because the other side of his face was painted red, I could make the argument that it makes it even worse. Y’all are the ones who hate Mexicans but wear sombreros on Cinco,” Phillips wrote in an X post.
Phillips was immediately pummeled in the replies to his post, which garnered thousands of responses. The Community Notes feature on X also added a note saying the writer “failed to provide full context” that the boy’s face paint is a reference to the football team.
The Daily Wire’s Michael Knowles commented that “though it is sometimes offensive, there’s nothing inherently wrong with ‘blackface,'” citing the many Hollywood performers who have performed in blackface over the years, including Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel, Robert Downey Jr., and Billy Crystal.”
“Deadspin writer here is trying to ruin the life of a child while insisting he’s actually the good guy in this situation,” one X user wrote.
“This race-hustling loser is tripling-down on attacking a young kid as ‘Racist!’ for wearing Kansas City Chiefs face-paint,” another X user wrote.
“We’ve spent decades paying some of the dumbest and most sensitive people alive to produce absolute drivel like this,” posted Wilfred Reilly, a political science professor at Kentucky State University.
The Daily Signal reporter Tony Kinnett wrote, “as a federally-registered member of the Cherokee Nation, I give any and all of you full permission to wear headdresses and tribal clothing. Paint your face red. Do a rain dance (then repent and seek Jesus). Also bring back the Cleveland Indians.”