Fox news commentator and actress Stacey Dash came under fire weeks ago for comments regarding the #OscarsSoWhite controversy. She said Black people should decide between segregation and integration and that awards shows like the BET Awards — and even Black history month — is racist toward white people because it “excludes them.” She has also called for an end to channels like BET and TV One.
Dash has built a career working in Black spaces — movies, magazines, and TV shows — and has used them to propel herself into the current position that she now holds at Fox.
Last night the entire situation resurfaced when Dash appeared on stage.
“I cannot wait to help my people out,” Dash announced to a baffled audience. “Happy Black History Month!” Her “moment” fell flat, and the audience was either astonished by the segment or just disgusted all together.
The reaction, both in the live audience — where singer The Weeknd was shown on camera looking stunned — and on social media, was one of confusion, according to ABC.
The Weeknd is all of us as Stacy Dash takes the stage #Oscars pic.twitter.com/fYADCoKuJR
— Donna Dickens (@MildlyAmused) February 29, 2016
Twitter users were just as baffled by the whole event as much as the audience. Celebrities on twitter pointed out the ridiculousness of the “joke:”
Bold move for Stacey Dash to come on the #Oscars with jokes just before a sister like @SarahKSilverman. "Bold," as in: don't do that.
— Jeffrey Wright (@jfreewright) February 29, 2016
Let me be petty: I had fashion goals 4 dress Dash wore and now the gown has to be dead to me. Yes, #askmemore but #doNOTwastefashiononfool.
— shonda rhimes (@shondarhimes) February 29, 2016
I hope Whatever deal #StaceyDash made with #FoxNews was worth it! #TeamDl
— DL Hughley (@RealDLHughley) February 29, 2016
? Who approved this foolery? What did you think of #StaceyDash's surprise appearance on stage? @… https://t.co/2D9tN41ISI
— B. Scott (@lovebscott) February 29, 2016
That Stacey Dash moment was the strangest thing of all time. #Oscars
— Kumail Nanjiani (@kumailn) February 29, 2016
Others realized that Dash was playing into her usual role as a troll:
That Stacey Dash clip was awkward af. Cringe.
— PantheR (@____PantheR) February 29, 2016
Too much to hope that someone dropped a glass of red wine on Stacey Dash's dress last night?
— ProfB (@AntheaButler) February 29, 2016
Stacey Dash = pic.twitter.com/PGStubnCHB
— Chevy Woods (@CHEVYWOODS) February 29, 2016
stacey dash is that friend that wanna split the check when she got 6 drinks & you got water. https://t.co/fF6BBVlQwM
— ASH (@nashtygal) February 29, 2016
stacey dash is that one friend who steals your stuff and helps you look for it https://t.co/u86ZIbhvts
— daddy greg (@n9viv) February 29, 2016
In the aftermath of the debacle, Dash published an “explanation” for her random appearance at the Oscars on her personal blog. She states in an excerpt:
“For example, I spoke out against Black History Month. (Why should there be such a thing? Haven’t we had more than just one month’s worth of accomplishments? Here my thoughts HERE.) Plus, I spoke out against the #OscarsSoWhite controversy HERE. My take? We need to stop complaining about white people oppressing us, we shouldn’t boycott the Oscars, and we need to support Chris Rock the host.
Which brings me to the joke. When they added ME to increase the diversity, I’m sure many Black people rolled their eyes. I’m not “Black enough,” they say. But guess what? I’ve heard that all my life. I would rather be a free thinking, Black than a cookie cutter Black who thinks – and votes – just like all my friends.”
Dash — like many Black conservatives — believe that they are free-thinking revolutionaries for voting Republican, but that’s not the case. They support a party with a front-runner who won’t distance himself from a documented white supremacist and former Ku Klux Klan Grand Dragon. Dash misses the point entirely: The joke was a flop, and she was not funny. The public and the Oscars’ audience — which was majority-white, by the way — did not like it.
