Superstar Will Smith explained why he doesn’t like the “Defund the Police” slogan as he shared how its the language that needs to be changed not the action itself.
“Abolish the police,” the 53-year-old actor told GQ magazine in a piece published Monday. “Defund the police.'” (RELATED: Will Smith In The Trailer For Netflix’s Sci-Fi Thriller ‘Bright’)
“I would love if we would just say ‘Defund the bad police,'” he added. “It’s almost like I want, as Black Americans, for us to change our marketing for the new position we’re in. So ‘critical race theory,’ just call it ‘truth theory.'” (RELATED: Jada Pinkett-Smith Opens Up About Her Past Relationship With Porn)
Presenting GQ’s November cover star: Will Smith. Read the full story by @WesleyLowery here: https://t.co/1lIiNMtI1Q pic.twitter.com/QviHDeahtV
— GQ Magazine (@GQMagazine) September 27, 2021
“The pendulum is swinging in our direction beautifully,” Smith continued. “And there’s a certain humility that will most capitalize on the moment for the future of Black Americans, without discounting the difficulty and the pain and the emotion.”
The “Men In Black” star said that it’s a “difficult” thing to discuss, but noted the “simplicity of Black Lives Matter” and how “anybody who tries to debate Black Lives Matter looks ridiculous.”
“So when I talk about the marketing of our ideas, Black Lives Matter was perfection,” the “Bad Boys” star shared. “From a standpoint of getting it done, Black Lives Matter gets it done. ‘Defund the police’ doesn’t get it done, no matter how good the ideas are. I’m not saying we shouldn’t defund the police. I’m saying, just don’t say that, because then people who would help you won’t.”
At one point, Smith said he wanted to “encourage Black Americans to take the acknowledgment and seize upon the present global opportunities” following what happened in the world after George Floyd’s death when the world “stood up with one voice and said, ‘We see it. We agree.'”