Actor Tim Matheson has been facing backlash after making fun of Melania Trump and mocking her English-speaking skills.
Taking aim at the former FLOTUS, the Animal House star wrote that it is good to have a First Lady that can speak English and has a heart.
“So wonderful to have a First Lady with class and heart. And, can speak English!” the 73-year-old actor wrote as he was responding to an NBC News story.
After taking a swipe at Melania, who was born in Slovenia, the actor was blasted by angry netizens who accused him of racism and suggested no one should be bashed over their English-speaking abilities.
“You don’t respect Melania because of her accent? Thank you for showing us the real you. R A C I S T. I do have an accent too! And she represents me. Therefore you are mocking me too!” one person wrote.
“Making fun of immigrants is never in good taste, especially when said immigrant has made it her mission to assimilate by learning English and embracing American culture,” another one added.
One person revealed: “Tim, my parents were doctors in Cuba who came to the US escaping Castro. After years of hard work they got their MD’s again and practiced for 30 years. Still, throughout their professional lives here there were always fools like you who mocked their accents.”
While Matheson initially doubled down on his insensitive comment by saying that “comedy is sometimes cruelly honest,” he later apologized after suffering a major backlash.
“This morning I made a hasty and stupid joke about the former First Lady. It wasn’t funny, and it was in poor taste. It was regretful and humorless and I apologize,” he said.
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Replaced!