Oscars slap sparks debate on the defense of Black women

NEW YORK (AP) — It started with a Black man slapping another Black man on live television at the globally televised Oscars, presumably in defense of a Black woman who was being ridiculed over her hairstyle.

But to many Black people, it was about more than a slap or an insult. It was about Black manhood, about what is expected of Black men in the 21st century — and about attitudes toward Black women.

The stunning physical altercation between actor Will Smith and comedian Chris Rock at the 94th Academy Awards on Sunday has sparked debate about the appropriate ways for Black men to publicly defend Black women against humiliation and abuse.

While many women have long rejected the misogynist premise that their safety and protection is the province of men, some see Smith’s professed defense of his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, as a principled act of love and pushback to those who say Black men don’t do enough to protect Black women.

Ayanna Abrams, a clinical psychologist and founder of Ascension Behavioral Health in Atlanta, said what protection from a spouse or partner looks like can be different for each women.

“Protection for some of us does look like something that is more assertive, in terms of going to speak to somebody," said Abrams, who is on the board of Black Girls Smile, a nonprofit that focuses on Black girls’ mental health.

But for many observers, protecting Black women from verbal insults stops short of physical assault.

Abrams added, “For some people, protection of Black women would have been (Rock’s) joke not happening in the first place. That’s also protection of Black women and their bodies, and how they are regarded in the media.”

During Sunday’s Oscars broadcast, Smith shocked the Dolby Theatre crowd in Los Angeles and millions of television viewers when he...