Following the recent edition of “The View,” on which the ladies discussed a Tennessee school district’s decision to prohibit the book “Maus,” which tells the narrative of a Holocaust survivor, Whoopi Goldberg started to trend on Monday. A drawing of a naked woman and “rough, unpleasant language” were stated as reasons for the book’s rejection by the school district, according to CNN.
While discussing the school district’s decision to ban the book, Whoopi said she was astonished that nudity was a factor in the decision, rather than the Holocaust itself. It was a “canard to throw you off from the reality that they don’t like history that makes White people seem bad,” Joy Behar said, adding that she believes the reason for the book’s suppression was because of its nudity. To escape the discussion of race and racism, the focus switched to schools attempting to remove controversial aspects of history. “Let’s be honest about it if you’re going to do this,” Whoopi added, “because the Holocaust isn’t about race.” She went on to argue that it was about man’s inhumanity to man.
After some people expressed their disappointment in Whoopi’s comment, she issued an apology late Monday.
In a statement posted to her Twitter page, Whoopi said, “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.”
She quoted Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, and continued, “The Holocaust was about the Nazi’s systematic annihilation of the Jewish people–who they deemed to be an inferior race.”
Whoopi concluded, “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.”
