Jussie Smollett says he's not a 'piece of s**t', reiterates innocence in hate crime hoax
Jussie Smollett denied once again that the assault on him two years ago was staged. For allegedly staging a hate crime, Smollett was found guilty of felony disorderly conduct in December 2021. Since the alleged assault happened in January 2019, the openly homosexual actor, who at the time starred in 'Empire,' has maintained his innocence. However, after being given a 150-day sentence, he only served six days in jail before filing an appeal. Smollett addressed the public criticism he experienced as a result of the scandal in a recent appearance with 'Sway In The Morning.'
He told hosts Sway Calloway and Heather B, “If I had done this, I’d be a piece of s**t. And I don’t think that that’s really questionable […] Again, it’s something I wanted to say. If I did something like this, it would mean I stuck my fist in the pain of Black Americans in this country for over 400 years. We’re not even talking about Africa because that’s an even deeper, larger conversation. It would mean that I stuck my fist in the fears of the LGBTQ community all over the world.”
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“I’m not that mother f**ker. Never have been. Don’t need to be. Didn’t need to have some sort of rising in his career. I was on the up and up. […] There would be no reason for me to do some dumb, corny shit like that. But people are going to believe what they’re going to believe,” Smollett added. Smollett, who resisted eating while in prison, also discussed what it was like to be in the jail's psychiatric unit. He denied being suicidal but was apparently kept there out of fear for his safety.
He recalled, “There was a part when they told me I was getting out. I’m in the fu**ing psych ward. I wasn’t in a jacket, but I was sleeping on a restraint bed. Everybody inside was very kind. When I left, I thanked them all.” Meanwhile, Smollett appeared to be in good mood despite everything he has gone through over the past three years. He made his directorial debut with B-Boy Blues, which originally premiered at the 2021 American Black Film Festival and debuted on BET+ on June 9.
He said, “My spirit is so… in such a season of gratitude. Like my, my spirit is, I’ve never felt more, more clear, I’ve never felt more sober. I’ve never felt more, I hope people don’t take that outta context, but I’m sure they will…. Yeah. But um, I’ve never felt healthier and more grateful and more, I’ve never felt more blessed than I feel now.” “So, my spirit is, you know, is really good. I’m still, you know, still dealing with things still, you know, having to, you know, I’m not shy to say that I am in therapy, as we all should be because of a lot of stuff that happened over the last three years, obviously, but also just, you know, just life stuff. You gotta be able to, you gotta be able to train your mind and not just train your body, you know, to be healthy and to be beautiful,” he remarked.