Smollett, 36, was arrested on Feb. 21 for a charge of filing a false police report.
The “Empire” actor initially claimed that two white men on Jan. 29 assaulted him in downtown Chicago in freezing temperatures, shouting slurs in addition to the “MAGA” line, in an apparent reference to President Donald Trump’s “Make America Great Again slogan.”
While “MAGA” is known as shorthand for the slogan, it’s rarely said aloud in place of the full slogan, making the quote appear awkward. With Chicago being heavily liberal along with most other American cities, it was one of the aspects of the alleged attack that first ignited people’s doubts.
Smollett also instructed the brothers to yell slurs at him and that Abel Osundairo, the other brother, should “attack him, but not hurt him too badly.”
Smollett gave the brothers extra money to buy the rope, ski masks, gasoline, gloves, and red baseball caps. The latter resembled the red hats that say “Make America Great Again,” which are worn by Trump and supporters of the president.
Smollett, like many in Hollywood and the entertainment industry, has been a big critic of Trump, recently calling Trump “and all his white cohorts” a “national disgrace.”
“And if you support them … so are you,” he wrote. “Clowns.” He shared a video that showed far-left lawmaker Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) speaking.
In an interview that aired on ABC a day before the Osundairos were arrested, Smollett said he thought he was attacked because of his frequent criticism of Trump.
The allegation from Smollett that his alleged attackers shouted “This is MAGA country” sparked a slew of comments and articles from media outlets claiming the attack was the latest from Trump supporters and trying to tie it into allegations of racism by the president and his supporters.
“America’s choice to embrace the blind rage of late-stage whiteness in decline is an explicit longing for this kind of crime, a version of America in which those who do not assimilate to the satisfaction of their white, straight, and Christian betters are subject to the impunity of law enforcement, the scorn of the media, and the fury of racist homophobes stalking the streets of your city, who want you to know that they could lynch you if they really wanted to, and maybe get away with it too,” he added.
The article remains online and Rivera has not apologized to Trump supporters.
He wrote, “Jussie Smollett—what about MAGA and the tens of millions of people you insulted with your racist and dangerous comments!?”