Queens rapper 50 Cent took to social media to slam the governor of his home state for saying young Black youth in an adjacent borough did not know what a computer is.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul made the erroneous and what some believe is racially charged statement on Monday, May 6, at the Milken Institute Global Conference.
“Right now, we have young Black kids growing up in the Bronx who don’t even know what the word computer is. They don’t know, they don’t know these things,” Hochul said from the state at the business conference in California.
Assemblywoman Amanda Septimo, a Bronx Democrat, also slammed the New York politician, stating that her statements were “harmful, deeply misinformed, and genuinely appalling.”
Others on social media were offended by Gov. Hochul’s statements, even as she later backpedaled, explaining that she regrets her making the statement.
“What the f—k is this? This just shows how out of touch they are,” read one comment on the Hip Hop Wolf’s Instagram profile. “They be 2 years old and know how to work a iPad better than the people in the Apple Store.”
Governor Kathy Hochul saying black people don't know what a computer is.
— 🇺🇸 Pismo 🇺🇸 (@Pismo_B) May 8, 2024
Hope every Black American remembers this on November 5th when they vote!
pic.twitter.com/5JVSeaDoNL
A third comment said, “I guarantee she ain’t had a conversation with a young black kid from the Bronx to know that.” Another Instagram user added, “Correction… Half of the kids in the Bronx don’t know who you are miss thing. She tried it.”
Later that same day, Gov. Hochul apologized for her remarks in a statement shared with NBC News.
“While discussing my commitment to expanding economic opportunity for communities of color, I misspoke and I regret it,” she said. “Of course Black children in the Bronx know what computers are — the problem is that they too often lack access to the technology needed to get on track to high-paying jobs in emerging industries like AI.”
50 clearly was not moved and after catching wind of her statement, he took to Instagram on May 8 to say, “I don’t know, any black kids that don’t know what a computer is in the Bronx. WTF They know how to work a iPad better than me.”
In a separate post hours later, he said, “I couldn’t believe she said that.”
This is not the first time the “Get Rich or Die Tryin’” rapper has gone after the governor this year, although in the previous instances he took a far more controversial position.
In February, he called on Hochul to check New York Mayor Eric Adams for proposing pilot programs like his $53 million plan to assist the migrant population.
“I want to talk to @govkathyhochul about the laws preventing [Mayor Adams] from doing things to make the situation better in New York…and where the proposed 2.4 billion she’s planning on spending on migrants is coming from…NOT MY TAXES!” Fif wrote at the time.
50 Cent moved to Houston, Texas, in 2021 but still seems to have a vested interest in his hometown. He has lived in and owns properties, according to The Richest.com, in South Jamaica, Queens, where he grew up; Saddle River, New Jersey; Atlanta; Hollywood Hills, California; Long Island; Farmington, Connecticut; and a vacation homes in both Cancun, Mexico, and South Africa. He recently unveiled his G-Unit production studio in Shreveport, Louisiana.
It is not clear how actively involved he is in any of the politics in those locations. But it seems he has the right amount of influence to do so.
