Jussie Smollett, one of the stars of Philadelphian Lee Daniels’ hit Fox TV series “Empire,” was the victim of what police are calling a racial and homophobia-based assault and battery in Chicago on Tuesday.
Smollett was attacked by two people who yelled homophobic and racist slurs at him, put a noose over his neck and poured a chemical on him, which the actor thought was bleach. Smollett said the attackers yelled President Trump’s phrase, “Make America Great Again” and the phrase, “MAGA country” during the assault.
Smollett, 36, is openly gay and plays a gay man in the series. He went to Northwestern Hospital emergency room after the attack, where he was still recovering as of press time. The hospital did not release specifics, but said the actor was listed in “good condition.” Reports are that Smollett sustained broken ribs and facial and other injuries in the attack.
A statement from the Chicago Police Department confirmed that a member of the “Empire” cast was involved in a “racially-charged assault and battery.” The police also stated, “Given the severity of the allegations, we are taking this investigation very seriously and treating it as a possible hate crime.”
According to the statement, “A 36-year-old man was walking … when two unknown offenders approached him and gained his attention by directing racial and homophobic slurs toward him.” The offenders then battered the victim’s face and poured an unknown chemical substance on him.
“At some point during the incident, one of the offenders wrapped a rope around the victim’s neck. The offenders fled the scene.”
The noose has a long history in the United States with more than 4,000 black men and women known to have been lynched through the years.
In April 2018, the Legacy Museum, which details the history of lynching, opened in Montgomery, Ala. A memorial to the thousands of victims, the National Memorial for Peace and Justice, opened the same month.
A spokesperson for the Chicago Police Department told PGN that no arrests had been made in the attack. Chicago police confirmed the account from Smollett, but declined to comment on the exact language used by the attackers, saying only that it was “racially charged and homophobic” and that these are “serious allegations,” being taken “very seriously.”
Chicago police spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said, “The Streeterville neighborhood where the alleged attack occurred has a very high density of city and private surveillance cameras. “As of 10 p.m. Tuesday, detectives canvassed and reviewed hundreds of hours of video and have now expanded the search area along the Chicago riverfront hoping to find video to be able to release a public description of the offenders.”
ABC News, which interviewed Smollett’s co-star, Terence Howard, on “GMA” Wednesday, reported Smollett has received homophobic threats before. Police told ABC that a letter containing threatening language, laced with a powdery substance believed to be Tylenol, was sent to Smollett at the Fox studio in Chicago last week. Due to the previous threats and the assault, the FBI is investigating.
Smollett is one of the most visible openly gay black men in the U.S., tweeted Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) Wednesday. “When one of the most famous black and gay men in America is not safe, the message is clearer than it has ever been. The dangerous lies spewing from the right wing is killing & hurting our people. Thinking of you @JussieSmollett, and my LGBTQ neighbors.”
“We are deeply disturbed and outraged by the recent racist and homophobic attack on Jussie Smollett,” the Philadelphia Office of LGBT Affairs and Office of Black Male Engagement said in a joint statement. “Attacks on black gay men are an extension of the nation’s continued history of racism and homophobia that permeates our communities on every level. We denounce acts of hatred sanctioned by white supremacy and homophobia. Our offices will continue combatting ideologies and actions motivated by hate. We must unite to support one another in the face of bigotry.
“We extend our condolences to Jussie, his family, and loved ones, and wish for his full mental and physical recovery. Our hearts are also with members of the black LGBTQ+ community, who continue to feel the emotional, psychological, and physical effects of centuries of systemic oppression.”
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), a 2020 candidate for president and a longtime supporter of the LGBTQ community, tweeted, “This is a sickening and outrageous attack, and horribly, it’s the latest in too many hate crimes against LGBTQ people and people of color.”
Smollett spoke publicly about being gay on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” in 2015. He told Ellen that he had always been open about his sexual orientation.
“There’s never been a closet that I’ve been in,” he said. He added that his choice not to discuss his personal life was in no way an effort to “hide or deny who God made me. There is, without a doubt, no closet that I’ve ever been in, and I just wanted to make that clear.” n