Jussie Smollet Cries While Talking About His Brutal Attack: I’m Pissed Off!

Jussie Smollet Cries While Talking About His Brutal Attack: I’m Pissed Off!

“Empire” actor Jussie Smollett is speaking out for the first time since he was brutally attacked as the target of a racist, homophobic hate crime in Chicago. He sat down with Robin Roberts for both ABC News and “Good Morning America” to discuss how to happened, naysayers, and how he’s moving on from the scarring incident.

Jussie commented on how he feels about people doubting the validity of his attack:

“I’m pissed off. It’s the attackers, but it’s also the attacks. At first it was a thing of, ‘Listen, if I tell the truth, then that’s it, ’cause it’s the truth.’ Then, it became a thing of, ‘How can you doubt that? How do you not believe that? It’s the truth!’ And then it became a thing of, like, ‘Oh! It’s not necessarily that you don’t believe it’s the truth- you don’t even want to see the truth.”

He shared, in detail, what happened that night in Chicago:

Jussie, tearfully, said that he’s hopeful police will find his attackers:

“Let’s hope that they are [found], you know what I’m saying? Let’s not go there yet. I was talking to a friend and I said, ‘I just want them to find them.’ And she said, ‘Sweetie, they’re not gonna find them.’ And it just made me so angry because, so I’m just gonna be left here with this?…So they just get to go free, and go on about their life? And possible attack someone else? And I’m gonna be left here to deal with the aftermath of this bull? That’s not cool to me. That’s not okay. So, I understand how difficult it will be to find them – but we gotta. I still want to believe, with everything that has happened, that there is something called justice.”

"I want to believe, with everything that has happened, that there is something called justice." @JussieSmollett says he doesn't know how he will heal if his attackers aren't found. https://t.co/b5efiP0JCG pic.twitter.com/Shtw0qCQOZ

— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 14, 2019

He also says that he feels that if he would have said his attackers were Black instead of MAGA supporters, he would have, sadly, gotten more support.

“I have to acknowledge the lies, and the hate. And it feels like if I had said it was a Muslim, or a Mexican, or someone black, I feel like the doubters would have supported me much more. A lot more. And that says a lot about the place that we are in our country right now.”

Jussie Smollett: "It feels like if I had said it was a Muslim, or a Mexican, or someone black, I feel like the doubters would have supported me a lot much more. A lot more. And that says a lot about the place that we are in our country right now." https://t.co/gMhSp8dO9e pic.twitter.com/WpUCq6STp2

— ABC News (@ABC) February 14, 2019

He also has a message for young, Black members of the LGBTQ community.

“I wanted that video to be found so badly for probably four reasons. Number one, I wanted them to find the people who did it. Number two, I want them to stop being able to say alleged attack. Number three, I want them to see that I fought back. And I want a little gay boy who might watch this to see that I fought the f*ck back. And it doesn’t take anything away from people who might not be able to do that. But I fought back. They ran off! I didn’t!…Learn to fight. Learn to be a fighter. And I’m not advocating violence at all. Let’s be clear about that. If you’re gonna die, fight until you do. Because if you don’t fight, you have no chance.”

"Learn to fight. Learn to be a fighter." @JussieSmollett says his advice for young gay men is not a message of violence but rather telling a matter of fighting for love, and to learn to fight for what you believe in. https://t.co/b5efiP0JCG pic.twitter.com/beQ3gQQ6qk

— Good Morning America (@GMA) February 14, 2019

Jussie Smollet’s incident is still under investigation with the Chicago Police Department, in which they have called the actor “consistent, credible, and cooperative.”

Written by Miata Shanay