Jimmy Kimmel ‘Allowing’ A Kid To Suggest The US ‘Kill Everyone In China’ Is A Clear Indicator Of How Rampant Racism Really Is

I missed the October 16 Jimmy Kimmel episode that featured a “Kids Round Table” where the late night TV host asked a group of young kids how the United States should pay nearly 1.3 trillion dollars in debt to China. If you are like me, and you missed this because it’s on too late and you don’t really bother watching Kimmel because you don’t find him that funny, here is the segment:

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On Saturday, over one thousand people gathered in Burbank to protest the segment of the show, holding signs that read teach kids no hatred and teach kids to love, not kill.

The segment, which is reported to have been unscripted, sure seems scripted to me, maybe not by anyone associated with Kimmel’s show but maybe by the kid’s parent who said the terrible remark. I know kids says the darndest things and all that nonsense, but when the kid made the statement isn’t this when an adult steps in and stops the taping and speaks to all the kids about why saying something like that is a horrific thing to say? Or because it’s all in the name of comedy do we let kids say whatever they want? From ABC15:

Both Kimmel and the ABC Network have since issued an apology regarding the segment.

“I do want to apologize to all of you. If I’ve upset you, I’m very, very sorry. We should not have put it on the air. We did not mean to upset you,” Kimmel said. “We won’t be showing the Kid’s Table segment any more. We’re not going to ever do that again. I’m very sorry.”

 

I think anyone over the age of six, and possibly even under that age, can understand why saying something like that is racist and awful. I’m going to assume that the Jimmy Kimmel show probably has editors who work on it, or someone somewhere may have voiced their opinion at some point that this was a racially insensitive comment to make. I believe in  freedom of speech. I know people have the power to turn the channel on their televisions if they find something offensive. But when a show allows something like this to air, especially without the adult interacting with the kids interrupting them to explain why this is a horrible thing to say, it’s almost like we are giving the green light to every racist out there to say the same thing. Commenters on yahoo thinks everyone offended by this needs to get over it:

Get a grip! Quit being offended! Wah wah white people! ‘Mericuh!

When I go about my day raising my kids, if any of them even dared to say something this racist and wrong I would speak to them about why it’s racist and wrong, and depending on what was said, maybe even ground them. Kids can be funny and irreverent and say bizarre things, but when one of them suggests genocide this is where we don’t air it for cheap laughs, this is where we sit them down and teach them otherwise.

This is all sort of easy for me to say, because I’m not of Asian decent, and I’m sure I can’t even begin to imagine how offensive this whole mess is to someone who is, but this is one white person who isn’t going to let my kids grow up to make jokes about other races. Too bad no one ever explained to ‘ol Jimmy here why this is totally unacceptable.

(Image: twitter)