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Topics: Celebrity, Film and TV, Racism, US News, no-article-matching, Whoopi Goldberg
Emily Brown
Topics: Celebrity, Film and TV, Racism, US News, no-article-matching, Whoopi Goldberg
Actor Whoopi Goldberg has been suspended from hosting The View over 'wrong and hurtful comments' she made about the Holocaust.
Goldberg, whose real name is Caryn Elaine Johnson, claimed the Holocaust wasn't 'about race' as she discussed a Tennessee school district's decision to ban the graphic novel Maus.
The book depicts an interview with a Polish Jew and Holocaust survivor, who discusses what they went through during the war, with Goldberg's comments coming just days after Holocaust Memorial Day on January 27.
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On the US talk show, the host said, 'If you're going to do this, then let's be truthful about it because the Holocaust isn't about race.'
She further claimed the tragic and fatal event was instead about 'man's inhumanity to man', arguing that both groups of people involved were white.
The comments were met with immediate backlash and prompted Goldberg to issue an apology on Twitter, explaining she had realised her mistake after having spoken to the head of the Anti-Defamation League.
She wrote, 'As Jonathan Greenblatt of the Anti-Defamation League shared, 'The Holocaust was about the Nazi's systematic annihilation of the Jewish people -- who they deemed to be an inferior race.' I stand corrected. The Jewish people around the world have always had my support and that will never waiver. I'm sorry for the hurt I have caused.'
In spite of the apology, Goldberg later caused further offence while attempting to explain her comments during an appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Monday evening, during which she said the Nazis had lied and actually had issues with ethnicity not race.
After receiving further criticism, she issued another apology, saying during her next appearance on The View that she 'misspoke'.
Speaking on Tuesday, she continued, '[The Holocaust] is indeed about race, because Hitler and the Nazis considered the Jews to be an inferior race. Now, words matter, and mine are no exception. I regret my comments and I stand corrected. I also stand with the Jewish people.'
In the wake of the events, ABC News announced that Goldberg had been suspended from the talk show for two weeks, effective immediately.
In a statement, ABC News President Kim Godwin said, 'I am suspending Whoopi Goldberg for two weeks for her wrong and hurtful comments. While Whoopi has apologized, I’ve asked her to take time to reflect and learn about the impact of her comments. The entire ABC News organization stands in solidarity with our Jewish colleagues, friends, family and communities.'
Goldberg, who is 66 years old, has been on The View since 2007.
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