Tourette’s Advocate ‘Mortified’ After Hurling Racial Slur At Michael B. Jordan

Tourette’s syndrome campaigner John Davidson has apologized for hurling the expletive N-word at Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo as they presented an award at the BAFTAs over the weekend.

Davidson has garnered massive backlash since he made the remark, with actor Jamie Foxx blasting the whole thing as “unacceptable.”

Meanwhile, John Davidson’s black co-star has defended him, explaining how the syndrome makes him unable to control what he says.

John Davidson has apologized for using the N-word on black actors Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo as they presented an award at the BAFTAs on Sunday.

During the high-profile event held at London’s Royal Festival Hall on Sunday, the Tourette’s campaigner was heard saying the expletive word to Jordan and Lindo,  but both actors kept their cool and didn’t react on stage.

Now, Davidson has released a statement to show just how sorry he is for his outburst while also thanking the organizers for making everyone aware of his condition.

“I wanted to thank BAFTA and everyone involved in the awards last night for their support and understanding and inviting me to attend the broadcast,” he said, per the Daily Mail. “I  appreciated the announcement to the auditorium in advance of the recording, warning everyone that my tics are involuntary and are not a reflection of my personal beliefs.”

He shared his joy on the warm round of applause he got after the announcement, explaining that it made him feel “welcomed and understood in an environment that would normally be impossible for me.”

Tourette’s Syndrome is a neurological condition that causes a person to make involuntary, repetitive movements or sounds called tics. Davidson also suffers from coprolalia, which is a condition that makes him involuntarily say socially unacceptable words or phrases, like when he famously shouted “f-ck the Queen” at Queen Elizabeth II in 2019 when he was awarded his MBE.

“In addition to the announcement by Alan Cumming, the BBC and BAFTA, I can only add that I am, and always have been, deeply mortified if anyone considers my involuntary tics to be intentional or to carry any meaning,” he notes in his statement.

“I was in attendance to celebrate the film of my life, I Swear, which, more than any film or TV documentary, explains the origins, condition, traits, and manifestations of Tourette Syndrome,” he continued. “I have spent my life trying to support and empower the Tourette’s community and to teach empathy, kindness, and understanding from others, and I will continue to do so.”

“I chose to leave the auditorium early in the ceremony as I was aware of the distress my tics were causing,” he shared.

Davidson’s life story is what inspired the film “I Swear,” which aims to create awareness about the condition and to shed light on the challenges those suffering from it face.

However, the campaigner, who has had it since age 12, faced backlash, particularly from Jamie Foxx, who didn’t believe it was an involuntary act, labeling it as “unacceptable.”

“Out of all the words you could’ve said, Tourette’s makes you say that. Nah, he meant that sh-t. Unacceptable,” the Oscar winner said.

When he shared his apology, several netizens also slammed Davidson, claiming his apology wasn’t earnest, especially as he failed to mention Jordan and Lindo by name.

One person on X wrote, “He didn’t even mention their names or directly apologise to the other people he yelled slurs at, but I’m supposed to care about him and this sympathy tour?”

Another commented, “Sounds like he said everything but an apology.”

However, some people used the opportunity to call for a better understanding of the situation while condemning ableism.

An X user noted, “What he said was disgusting and is in no way acceptable, but can people also stop using this as an excuse to be blatantly ableist? Two wrongs don’t make a right. You can be upset/offended by his words without also resorting to slurs and ableism.”

The controversy then shifted from the outburst itself to the management of the event, as Lindo slammed BAFTA for failing to address it with him after the event.

The “Da 5 Bloods” star said he and Jordan “did what we had to do” while presenting, but he wished “someone from BAFTA spoke to us afterward.”

Earlier on Monday, BAFTA issued an “unreserved apology” for the “very offensive language that carries incomparable trauma and pain for so many,” before going on to explain that the tics are “in no way a reflection of an individual’s beliefs and are not intentional.”

Meanwhile, black actor Thierry Mabonga defended Davidson, saying that actors should have been warned about his condition.

The D.R. Congo-born actor, who starred as Davidson’s lawyer in the film, took to TikTok to comment on a scene where he had to step in for him after getting himself into trouble.

“I’m representing him, but at the same time, he’s hurling abuse at me, and it’s very offensive words,” Mabonga said. “Now, this is the condition, the disease of Tourette syndrome. John cannot control what he says. In fact, that’s the whole point of why we’re making this film.”

“We’ve made this film, ‘I Swear,’ to educate people about Tourette’s syndrome,” he noted, before going on to slam critics who think Davidson shouldn’t have been at the award ceremony.

“How can you say that he can’t be there at the awards? This is a film about his life. This is a film about him. Absolutely, he has to be there. And absolutely it’s great that he was there,” the “I Swear” actor said.

“And I don’t know if some of the actors there were told in advance about someone with Tourette’s being there. Hopefully they would have been told [and] therefore prepared for that kind of stuff that happened,” he continued.