The last 24 hours have been very enlightening for me, and I have learned something very important. Something I will get to at the end. First, a brief recap of events. So the BAFTAs were on very recently, and as two black actors took to the stage, someone in the crowd shouted “nigger!”. Oh yeah, I’m not censoring myself here, for a very good reason that I will explain later. Anyway, the headlines and comments from around the world have been harsh and show very little intelligence.

The person who shouted the word was John Davidson, a much-respected and MBE-awarded Tourette syndrome campaigner and activist. More accurately, John suffers from a specific form of Tourette’s called coprolalia, and this causes John to shout out offensive words, completely out of his control, at the worst possible time. He doesn’t do it for “fun”, it’s a scientifically and medically proven condition. Over the years, John has been part of several documentaries (John’s Not Mad, The Boy Can’t Help It, and Tourettes: I Swear I Can’t Help It) that have caught up with John at various points of his life, boy and man, as she struggles to live with his condition and the many, many troubles it brings him.

Anyway, so-called “respected” press outlets, news sites and just straight-up ignorant idiots on social media have been quick to lambast John for his shouting of “nigger!” at the BAFTAs, belittling him as a person, demanding an apology, calling John a racist and all sorts. All over something that he can not control. In this article, I’m going to bring up some of the comments/questions I have found and do my best to answer them with some basic common sense (something severely lacking over this whole thing)… and maybe just a touch of sarcasm. Oh, just to make it as clear as I can, I am not a Tourette syndrome expert, I hold no qualifications. I’m just a pain, old, average man who spent a couple of minutes looking into John’s condition and who has the ability to use my brain.

So then, the first comment/question I have seen is “Why would John even have that word in his vocabulary?”

That’s an easy one, and I need to ask a question in return. Why do you have that word in your vocabulary? The answer to both questions will be pretty much the same. Millions, billions of people around the globe have that word in their vocabulary. We hear it in films, in music, we read it in books, etc. Having a word in your vocabulary does not make you a racist. The difference between you and John, though, is that you can control what you say and John can’t. You know that the word is taboo, so you choose not to use it. John’s neurological disorder bypasses that whole thing and makes him shout words out of his control, especially ones that are taboo. John has the word in his vocabulary for the same reason you do. So if you think John is a racist just because he knows the word, then so are you for the very same reason.

One of my “favourite” comments has come from the actor Jamie Foxx, who has said (and I quote) “Out of all the words, you could’ve said Tourette’s makes you say that… unacceptable” and “Nah, he meant that shit”.

This just further proves my earlier point of comments coming from ignorant idiots, Jamie is one of the many. I don’t think I need to keep reiterating that John can’t control his outbursts. So no, Jamie, he didn’t “mean that shit”. So I have a different point to make. Jamie Foxx thinks someone suffering from Tourette’s “meant” to say “nigger” and thinks it is “unacceptable”… but he’s okay saying it himself in movies? Hey Jamie, have you ever seen Django Unchained? You know, that film written and directed by a white man that has you saying “nigger” every other scene? So, someone with a recognised medical condition that they can’t control shouting “nigger” is “unacceptable” and he “meant” to shout it, but saying “nigger” because you’re getting paid millions of dollars is acceptable? Pick a lane, Jamie, because you’re all over the road here. Jamie Foxx, you’re an absolute cockwomble. Ricky Gervais calling these Hollywood elite out at the Golden Globes a five years ago was spot on with how utterly clueless they are as to what goes on in the real world.

The next comment I have seen, “He should be forced to apologise”.

No, John should not be forced to apologise for anything. In fact, he shouldn’t apologise at all, forced or not. John felt deeply ashamed at what happened, and he removed himself from the audience. Afterwards, he did put out a statement further explaining his shame.

John Davidson: “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. I chose to leave the auditorium early into the ceremony as I was aware of the distress my tics were causing.”

It’s very clear that John felt terrible for what happened. Newsflash for you, racists tend not to feel shame. He removed himself, he was not asked or told to leave, he made the decision himself, as he felt awful about his outburst that he couldn’t control. For me (and I hope, many others), that is far better than a forced apology. John should never apologise for his disability, nobody should have to apologise for having a medical condition.

In 2019, John was awarded an MBE by the Queen. As he was accepting his award, he shouted “Fuck the Queen” and called her a “bitch”… at the Queen. Was there a massive media backlash? No. Were news sites dragging his name through the mud? No. Were there calls for him to apologise? No, not even from the Queen herself. The whole thing was handled with tact and an understanding that seems to be lost on this whole BAFTA thing today. Even the Queen was okay with John’s condition and was fully understanding of it. So why can’t people today? Trust me, shouting “Fuck the Queen” at the Queen is far, far worse than shouting “nigger!” as two black actors took to the stage to present an award. Two actors who are guilty of using that word themselves… but of course, it’s “okay” to use the word when you’re being paid millions of dollars, but not when you have a recognised medical condition.

Or, look at it this way. I’m somewhat sure that the two multi-millionaire actors hearing the word “nigger” (as they have done many times and used it themselves) will be okay, over the guy who is being belittled on social media and by the press and who has a disability that he can’t control. I wonder, if John had been a black man with the same condition and shouted “nigger”, would there be the same level of backlash? Nope.

This next one has been one of my favourite comments. “I know someone with Tourette’s and they don’t say that word.”

I have a few points to raise here. First, if true, great, well done, I’m really happy that your friend/colleague/family member with Tourette’s doesn’t say “nigger”. However, if you have even the most basic knowledge of the condition, then you’d know that Tourette’s syndrome is not a “one size fits all” thing. There’s an entire spectrum of different types of Tourette’s that have different effects on each individual case. Some people with it hardly have any tics and can get through life with little to no issues, some people suffer from multiple different types and struggle with everyday life. John falls into the latter. Ergo, you knowing someone with Tourette’s that doesn’t say “nigger” has absolutely nothing to do with John and his condition.

One of the reasons that this has been my favourite comment is that, I’m 100% sure that most of the people posting it are lying and doing so just for some Internet clout and likes. They want to call John out for his outburst, but lack the balls to do it directly, so they go the sneaky “Actually, I know someone with Tourette’s…” route. and get other, like-minded idiots clicking the like button. I say this because this is the most common comment that I have come across. It seems to me that most of the people commenting on this subject have very suddenly become acquainted with someone with Tourette’s. As I said before, if it is true, then said person would know that Tourette’s comes in a great many different flavours, that it affects different people in different ways, and they would know that their comment is utterly redundant. Especially when you consider that John’s specific form of Tourette’s, coprolalia, only effects 10% of people with Tourette’s, which itself is quite rare. So either the thousands of comments made all know the same very small number of people around the world with coprolalia, or they’re lying.

Let’s take a look at another comment. “Why was he in the audience anyway. If he can’t control his swearing, then he shouldn’t have been allowed to attend.”

Okay, first, that would be breaking the law. We do have laws here in the UK, where the BAFTAs were held, that allow people with disabilities (physical, mental, whatever) to have the same rights as able-bodied people. Should we apologise for NOT marginalising and excluding people? I thought we, as a collective people, were supposed to be more inclusive? John had just as much right to be there as anyone else who was there. Let me flip this whole thing on its head. That’s like suggesting that if black people can’t handle the fact that someone has a condition that makes them shout “nigger”, completely involuntarily, then black people shouldn’t be allowed to attend. Yeah, pretty rough, eh? John has every right to be there in the audience.

There was another reason he was in attendance, the film about his life was up for awards. There is a wonderful irony in the ignorance of people calling John out for his “nigger” outburst at the BAFTAs, while he was there to support the film about his life that explains his condition and the reason he has such outbursts, and a film that was made to raise awareness. If only there was a film…

I do want to bring up something else that John mentioned after the BAFTAs when he left of his own volition, and something that covers a very important detail.

John Davidson: “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. 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. I was heartened by the round of applause that followed this announcement and felt welcomed and understood in an environment that would normally be impossible for me.”

There was an announcement that explained John’s condition before the show. Everyone there was told. Those two actors who were (reportedly) “offended” by the outburst would’ve been fully aware and should’ve been understanding. So if everyone was told, why is there such vitriolic backlash against John? Why is there a severe lack of compassion and understanding? Why is the guy with the disability being destroyed by news sites and on social media?

Do you know where people should be directing their ire? To the BBC who aired the awards. You see, the airing was on a two-hour delay, and they could’ve, very easily, censored out John’s uncontrollable outburst… but they didn’t. They did censor out other things. Apparently, someone shouted “free Palestine” (or something similar) and that got cut out of the broadcast. So why not remove John’s “nigger” shouting? Still, I think that does put things on a very slippery slope, as censoring someone for willingly shouting “free Palestine” (whether you agree with the politics or not) makes sense, as it was willingly shouted out. But censoring someone with an uncontrollable disability? Well, that is rather ableist, no?

John has been living with, struggling with, documenting, raising awareness of his condition longer than most of the people making the comments I have covered have been alive. I reckon he knows a bit more about it than you do.

This brings me to that thing that I mentioned at the start about me learning something very important about all of this. That pretty much all of the negative comments and vitriol aimed at John share a very common denominator. They’re largely coming from one specific group of people. No, I’m not talking about the colour of their skin, but the country in which they live. The U.S.A. It’s like Americans have only, over the last 24 hours, discovered what Tourette’s is. But instead of looking into the condition (particularly regarding coprolalia), teaching themselves, watching John’s multiple documentaries, watching the film about his life and attempting to learn… they’re too busy belittling someone with a disability on social media. God bless America, eh? I now understand why Trump got into power… twice.

John, if you ever read this, never apologise.

As for why I chose not to censor myself over using the word “nigger”? It was to make a valid point, it was to highlight context. You can have a word in your vocabulary and use it  WITHOUT the intent to cause offence. Context is key. Using a racist word does not automatically make you racist, it depends on the context and the intent of the use of that word. Within the context I used it here, I hope you get the point. I know that Jamie Foxx won’t.