As the “Red Table Talk” grows in popularity, more and more celebrities are making their way over to come to sit at the literal red table and, for once and for all, clarify whatever foolishness they found themselves in before appearing on the show.
On Tuesday, Dec. 8, the popular social media talk show with co-hosts Jada Pinkett Smith, her daughter Willow Smith, and mother Adrienne Banfield Norris, aka Gammy, had possibly one of its most controversial guests to date.
Beauty influencer and the younger daughter of actress Lori Loughlin and designer Mossimo Giannulli, Olivia Jade, appeared on the Dec. 8 episode of the popular Facebook web series. This was the first time the 21 year old spoke out since her parents were caught in a high-profile college admissions scheme that came to light in 2019.
Loughlin or “Aunt Becky,” as many referred to her on social media, referencing her character on the ABC-TV television sitcom “Full House,” pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire and mail fraud. She was sentenced to two months at Federal Correctional Institution, a low-security federal facility in Dublin, California. She began her sentence on Oct. 30. Meanwhile, her husband, who pled guilty to the same charges, was sentenced to five months at a federal prison in Lompoc, Near Santa Barbara, California, on Nov. 15. The couple pled guilty to fraud in May for charges related to paying William “Rick” Singer, the ringleader of the bribery admissions scandal, a total of $500,000 to guarantee their daughters’ admission to the University of Southern California. As part of the payment, the daughters would be labeled as recruits to the college’s crew team, despite having never competed in a sport.
Olivia revealed that while her parents were away, she decided to speak on the matter on a platform where she wouldn’t be attacked. In the past, the YouTube star received backlash for saying that she was more into partying than her college courses. However, her appearance on the series received mixed reviews from critics, especially from Gammy, who admitted she “fought tooth and nail” against the young star being on the show.
“I found it really ironic that she chose three Black women to reach out to for her redemption story,” the 67 year old explained. “I feel like, here we are, a white woman coming to Black women for support when we don’t get the same from them. It bothers me on so many levels and her being here is the epitome of white privilege to me.”
Meanwhile, the “Set Off” actress had a different take on and explained her reasoning behind the invite, stating that she didn’t want to treat another woman in the same manner white women have treated her. Jada said she could relate to Olivia being a mother and understands that not everyone will agree with her stance. “This is a practice of compassion,” Jada said. “To me, this young girl is reaping the repercussions of the actions of her parents.”
While Willow explained she understood both sides of the matter, Gammy wasn’t sold and said, “At the end of the day, I really feel like she [sic] gonna be ok, and she’s going to recover whether her ass was sitting at this table or not.” Many viewers of the show sided with her opinion, including a Twitter user who wrote, “Grammy was 1000% right. Black women are constantly used when the world needs an escape route, get out of jail free card or something fixed, but are never awarded the same benefits.” They added, “From a business perspective, everyone in Red Table Talk’s production and booking dept need raises!”
While another person wrote, “I’m with Gammy. The girl is using the #redtabletalk for sympathy and redemption. Meanwhile there is no red table for the Black mothers in prison for years for changing their address to get their kids in better schools. They didn’t change their kids kids grades just the address!!
