If you’d have told me, a week ago, that I’d be devoting an article to the thoughts of the man who, by the numbers, is indisputably the greatest NBA player of all time, I’d have assumed you'd taken a few basketballs to the head.  Of course, nobody could’ve expected what went down at the Oscars, Sunday night, between Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Will Smith; so here we are.

That Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was so incredibly eloquent in his self-published essay was no surprise: In addition to introducing the world to 'The Skyhook' and making goggles look cool, he’s been a mainstay in popular culture, for as long as I can remember, having appeared, as himself, in everything from Airplane (1980) and Fletch (1985) to The Simpsons (2011) and The Big Bang Theory (2019); has written for The New York Times, Time, and Newsweek; has published a number of well-received books about American People of Color; and has become an accomplished mystery writer, even co-producing eight episodes of Veronica Mars (2019)!  But, what really impressed me was the authenticity of his words and the non-condescending tone he used.  In short, Kareem cares and wants us all to care, too.

So, here is the beginning of his essay, “Will Smith Did a Bad, Bad Thing,” which he self-published on his blog, The Official Substack of Kareem, as well as a link to the essay, in its entirety. 

Will Smith Did a Bad, Bad Thing

Slapping Chris Rock was also a blow to men, women, the entertainment industry, and the Black community

When Will Smith stormed onto the Oscar stage to strike Chris Rock for making a joke about his wife’s short hair, he did a lot more damage than just to Rock’s face. With a single petulant blow, he advocated violence, diminished women, insulted the entertainment industry, and perpetuated stereotypes about the Black community.

That’s a lot to unpack. Let’s start with the facts: Rock made a reference to Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, as looking like Demi Moore in GI Jane, in which Moore had shaved her head. Jada Pinkett Smith suffers from alopecia, which causes hair loss. Ok, I can see where the Smiths might not have found that joke funny. But Hollywood awards shows are traditionally a venue where much worse things have been said about celebrities as a means of downplaying the fact that it’s basically a gathering of multimillionaires giving each other awards to boost business so they can make even more money.

The Smiths could have reacted by politely laughing along with the joke or by glowering angrily at Rock. Instead, Smith felt the need to get up in front of his industry peers and millions of people around the world, hit another man, then return to his seat to bellow: “Keep my wife's name out of your fucking mouth.” Twice.

Some have romanticized Smith’s actions as that of a loving husband defending his wife. Comedian Tiffany Haddish, who starred in the movie Girls Trip with Pinkett Smith, praised Smith’s actions: “For me, it was the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen because it made me believe that there are still men out there that love and care about their women, their wives.”

Actually, it was the opposite. Smith’s slap was also a slap to women. If Rock had physically attacked Pinkett Smith, Smith’s intervention would have been welcome. Or if he’d remained in his seat and yelled his post-slap threat, that would have been unnecessary, but understandable. But by hitting Rock, he announced that his wife was incapable of defending herself—against words. From everything I’d seen of Pinkett Smith over the years, she’s a very capable, tough, smart woman who can single-handedly take on a lame joke at the Academy Awards show.

This patronizing, paternal attitude infantilizes women and reduces them to helpless damsels needing a Big Strong Man to defend their honor least they swoon from the vapors. If he was really doing it for his wife, and not his own need to prove himself, he might have thought about the negative attention this brought on them, much harsher than the benign joke. That would have been truly defending and respecting her. This “women need men to defend them” is the same justification currently being proclaimed by conservatives passing laws to restrict abortion and the LGBTQ+ community.

Click here to read the essay in its entirety.

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