*Whoopi Goldberg stuck up for Elisabeth Hasselbeck on Wednesday’s episode of “The View,” defending her former co-host against charges of racism.
Hasselbeck, who left “The View” in 2013 and is now Fox News, got scores of side-eyes for a question regarding Sandra Bland, who was found dead in her Texas jail cell three days after being arrested during a routine traffic stop. During the stop, things escalated when Bland questioned the officers request for her to extinguish her cigarette.
Hasselbeck pondered whether Bland’s cigarette could have been used as a weapon against the arresting officer, prompting many to brand Hasselbeck, known as a conservative voice on “The View,” as racist.
Goldberg jumped to her defense, contending that Hasselbeck was doing her job as a journalist.
“Somehow, suddenly, it is no longer OK to pose a question that will give you an answer in order to best understand what’s going on,” Goldberg said.
Goldberg touted her personal experience with Hasselbeck as proof that the latter isn’t racist.
“We’ve been friends for about seven, eight years, and she has not asked me to pick any cotton,” Goldberg noted.
Fresh new “View” cohost Michelle Collins expressed her doubts.
“You kind of have an idea of who watches Fox News,” Collins chimed in. “To ask if a cigarette could be used as a weapon … well, yeah, anything can be used as a weapon.”
Raven-Symone offered her own perspective on the topic, noting, “There are a lot of people of color who think that white people shouldn’t ask certain questions because they don’t understand it … and I don’t think that’s fair.
“We have to stop being so sensitive,” Raven-Symone added.
“I didn’t find it offensive at all. I felt that she was asking a provocative question as a journalist,” said Rosie Perez, who questioned whether the same conversation would occur if Matt Lauer had asked the question that Hasselbeck did.
Goldberg ended with this: “If we stop asking questions, how will we ever know the truth? Relax; you’ll recognize the real racists. You know them when you see them and when you hear them. This woman sat here for 12 years and had disagreements that does not make her a frickin’ racist. Sorry.”
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