Actor Nick Cannon apologized Wednesday for anti-semitic and racist remarks he made during his show “Cannon’s Class.”
The apology came a day after he was dropped from ViacomCBS over the comments, according to a report published by Variety.
First and foremost I extend my deepest and most sincere apologies to my Jewish sisters and brothers for the hurtful and divisive words that came out of my mouth during my interview with Richard Griffin.
— Nick Cannon (@NickCannon) July 16, 2020
“First and foremost I extend my deepest and most sincere apologies to my Jewish sisters and brothers for the hurtful and divisive words that came out of my mouth during my interview with Richard Griffin,” Cannon said on Twitter. “They reinforced the worst stereotypes of a proud and magnificent people and I feel ashamed of the uninformed and naïve place that these words came from. The video of this interview has since been removed.”
On my podcast I used words & referenced literature I assumed to be factual to uplift my community instead turned out to be hateful propaganda and stereotypical rhetoric that pained another community For this I am deeply sorry but now together we can write a new chapter of healing
— Nick Cannon (@NickCannon) July 16, 2020
At one point in the video full of anti-Semitic remarks, Cannon claimed blacks were the “true Hebrews.” The video has since been removed.
“It’s never hate speech, you can’t be anti-Semitic when we are the Semitic people,” Cannon said on the podcast. “When we are the same people who they want to be. That’s our birthright. We are the true Hebrews.” (RELATED: ‘Closer To Animals’: Nick Cannon Goes On Racist, Anti-Semitic Rant, Says ‘White People’ And Jewish People Are The ‘True Savages)
“While the Jewish experience encompasses more than 5,000 years and there is so much I have yet to learn, I have had at least a minor history lesson over the past few days and to say that it is eye-opening would be a vast understatement,” he added. “I want to express my gratitude to the Rabbis, community leaders and institutions who reached out to me to help enlighten me, instead of chastising me. I want to assure my Jewish friends, new and old, that this is only the beginning of my education — I am committed to deeper connections, more profound learning and strengthening the bond between our two cultures today and every day going forward.”
Cannon did not apologize for his comments saying white people are the real “savages” because they “rob, steal, rape and kill.”
Cannon’s apology also followed Fox’s decision to keep Cannon on as a host of “The Masked Singer.”
“When we were made aware of Nick Cannon’s interview with Richard Griffin on YouTube, we immediately began a dialogue with Nick,” the network said in a statement, Variety reported. “He is clear and remorseful that his words were wrong and lacked both understanding and context, and inadvertently promoted hate. This was important for us to observe. Nick has sincerely apologized, and quickly taken steps to educate himself and make amends. On that basis and given a belief that this moment calls for dialogue, we will move forward with Nick and help him advance this important conversation, broadly. Fox condemns all forms of hate directed toward any community and we will combat bigotry of any kind.”