Elderly Black man in blackface storms Sarah Silverman show in protest at old skit
Topics: Celebrity, Film and TV, Racism
Sophie Cockerham
Featured Image Credit: @mbjackson51/Instagram / WENN Rights Ltd / Alamy Stock Photo
Topics: Celebrity, Film and TV, Racism
She’s one of America’s best-loved comedians, but Sarah Silverman found herself in hot water last week over a race row to do with one of her skits from 15 years ago.
During one of the star’s shows in New Jersey earlier this week, elderly protester Michael B. Jackson accused 'the racist Sarah Silverman' of having her 'goons' manhandle and remove him from the venue - after he wore blackface paint in response to an infamous sketch she once took part in.
Sitting in the front row at the Ocean Resort Casino in Atlantic City on 4 February, Jackson recorded a video of himself wearing the face paint, complete with white lips and black pigtails to mimic Sarah’s look from The Sarah Silverman Show.
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While he insisted he wanted the demonstration to be peaceful, Jackson caught the attention of Silverman’s opening act Rory Albanese around 20 minutes into his set.
While some said to TMZ the pensioner was heckling the comedian, Jackson claimed he just wanted to sit in silence after being picked on by Albanese.
Things then got ugly as security guards were called.
In a video of the altercation, which the protestor filmed on his phone, they can be seen repeatedly asking him to leave - but Jackson repeatedly declared he had 'the right to be here' because he bought tickets.
A casino rep later confirmed to TMZ that the protester was given a ticket by the police for trespassing after he refused to leave until they escorted him out of the building. Jackson later requested medical attention for his anxiety.
Taking to Instagram after the incident, the 71-year-old told his followers: “Racist Sarah Silverman had goons at the Ocean Resort Casino in AC, rough me up, throw me out of the show and evict me from my room, because I wore blackface paint at her show. I wound up in the hospital.”
He later added in a separate post: “I’m 71 years old and it took 6 of them. Apparently Sarah Silverman feels it’s okay for her to wear black face, but no one else.”
In the original sketch from 2007, Silverman upset fans when she wore dark face paint to see whether it is more difficult to be Black or Jewish.
“I look like the beautiful Queen Latifah,” she joked, before telling the congregation at an African-American church: “I’m Black today.”
However, the 52-year-old later said she regretted her actions.
In an interview with GQ, she admitted: “It was like, I’m playing a character, and I know this is wrong, so I can say it. I’m clearly liberal. That was such liberal-bubble stuff, where I actually thought it was dealing with racism by using racism
“I don’t get joy in that anymore. It makes me feel yucky. All I can say is that I’m not that person anymore.”
UNILAD has contacted Atlantic City Police Department and Sarah Silverman's representatives for comment.