Jesse Williams' BET Awards Speech

Submission 10,590

Overview

Jesse Williams BET Awards Speech was an oration delivered by American actor Jesse William after receiving the Humanitarian Award at the BET Awards ceremony in late June 2016. Williams' acceptance speech, which placed the spotlight on several hot-button button issues that have long been affecting the black community, was met with a standing ovation from the audience and praise from the news media, though not without drawing criticisms from alt-right members and critics of the Black Lives Matter movement on the social media.

Background

At the 16th annual BET Awards ceremony on June 26th, 2016, Jesse Williams, the American actor best known for his role as Dr. Jackson Avery on the ABC Television series Grey's Anatomy, received the Humanitarian Award of the Year for for his involvement in the Black Lives Matter movement and other contributions to civil rights activism. Upon receiving the award, Williams gave an acceptance speech that touched on a range of issues surrounding race relations in the United States, including institutional racism, police brutality and cultural appropriation.

Developments

Online reaction to the speech has been mixed, with those from the left praising the speech and those from the right criticizing it.

Justin Timberlake's Reaction

The controversy over Jesse Williams' speech began when American pop musician Justin Timberlake tweeted a message praising Williams' speech with the hashtag #inspired.

Many people felt that Timberlake's tweet exemplified the cultural appropriation of black culture that was pointed out during the speech, prompting a lengthy debate.

Later that evening, Timberlake tweeted an apology to those who were offended by his message.