Over the past 24 hours, The View host and EGOT winner Whoopi Goldberg has been the subject of a controversy surrounding Holocaust-related comments she made during yesterday’s episode. What began as a discussion on censorship and banning books turned into a flashpoint that persisted to be a hot topic, with the public weighing in on how they felt about the issue. After encountering backlash, Ms. Goldberg issued an apology to those she had offended with her remarks, capping off a day of intense discussion.
Whoopi Goldberg’s Holocaust-Related Comments On The View
During the "Hot Topics" segment of The View's January 31st episode, one of the discussions that took place centered around the recent banning of the books Maus and To Kill A Mockingbird in separate US school systems. Expanding to overall subject of whether or not the Holocaust was racially motivated, Goldberg claimed that anti-semitic behavior didn’t automatically equate to racism. For full context, the segment in question from that episode of The View can be seen below:
The ABC show has been no stranger to viral moments of discussion such as these, as various co-hosts have engaged in open discussion and sometimes even cringeworthy moments. With that history well in mind, the reaction to Whoopi Goldberg’s thoughts on yesterday’s show were enough to prompt reactions from the internet community, which eventually would lead to her public apology on social media.
Whoopi Goldberg Apologizes Following Backlash
One of the many responses to Ms. Goldberg’s comments came from Jonathan Greenblatt, the CEO of the Anti-Defamation League. Mr. Greenblatt rebutted Whoopi Goldberg’s viewpoint through a tweet of his own, posted online yesterday afternoon; and it would eventually be quoted in Whoopi’s apology issued later in the day. Here’s Jonathan Greenblatt's tweet, in its entirety:
No Whoopi Goldberg, the Holocaust was about the Nazi’s systematic annihilation of the Jewish people – who they deemed to be an inferior race. They dehumanized them and used this racist propaganda to justify slaughtering 6 million Jews. Holocaust distortion is dangerous.
Another media appearance would keep the subject firmly in play, as Whoopi Goldberg was also a guest on last night’s episode of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. On hand to discuss, among other things, her return to the Star Trek universe seen in the recent trailer for Picard Season 2, Colbert engaged Goldberg in a discussion to further clarify her remarks. Digging a little further into her process, here’s what Whoopi had to say:
Whoopi Goldberg would eventually post an apology later in the evening, after the taping of Colbert. Writing a message that quoted part of Jonathan Greenblatt’s message above, Goldberg took to Twitter to note the following:
On today's show, I said the Holocaust 'is not about race, but about man's inhumanity to man.' I should have said it is about both. ... 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.
While her comments didn’t spark a major argument, as has been known to happen on the show, Whoopi Goldberg did spark a larger conversation on the subject of race and the Holocaust. How this discourse will play out today, or in the days and weeks to come, has yet to be seen. In the meantime, The View can be seen live on your local ABC station, every weekday at 11 AM ET as part of the 2022 TV schedule.
