“The Underground Railroad” star Thuso Mbedu landed in hot water on Thursday after she thanked controversial podcaster MacG.
In a “Podcast and Chill with MacG” episode uploaded on Monday, MacG and his co-hosts took time to shout out Thuso who is starring in the upcoming Amazon Prime Video series and is set to star in a movie with Viola Davis.
Taking to Twitter, in a now-deleted post Thuso thanked MacG for the shout out on his podcast and said: “Thank you @podcastwithmacg for the shout-out congrats & well done with the leaps yall are making.”
Fans of Thuso, specifically members of the LGBTQI+ community and allies, did not appreciate her acknowledging MacG since he has been accused of being transphobic, homophobic and a misogynist.
Following this Thuso deleted the post and explained why she decided to remove it.
"I deleted a previous post as it seems to have offended some. I didn’t know why so I went to someone that I trust & who I knew could give me better insight. Others chose to educate me and it’s out of care and respect for them that I deleted my post," Thuso said.
She continued: “Please note, ’Delete this’ and throwing side comments doesn’t educate anyone on anything & as a result, little to nothing is changed.”
Please note, “Delete this” and throwing side comments doesn’t educate anyone on anything & as a result, little to nothing is changed.
— тнU§σ Mвє∂u (@ThusoMbedu) May 6, 2021
However, this response didn’t sit well with many tweeps and they shared why.
“Why must the onus lie with the hurt and "offended" to educate? Guys no.
“You were wrong. You were told. Don't make villains of those who called you out.
“It's tiring,” said @BongaDlulane.
Why must the onus lie with the hurt and "offended" to educate? Guys no.
— Bonga Dlulane (@BongaDlulane) May 6, 2021
You were wrong. You were told. Don't make villains of those who called you out.
It's tiring. https://t.co/FK72MMlnYf
“If you can tweet, you can Google it and educate yourself. You can also approach people willing to do that labour but don’t expect that here,” commented @IAmAForce_.
If you can tweet, you can Google it and educate yourself. You can also approach people willing to do that labour but don’t expect that here. https://t.co/0Z6kxbzgll
— 🌈PleaseRTPinnedPost🌈 (@IAmAForce_) May 6, 2021
“There were so many people in the comments educating you, stop it,” said @thandozuma_.
There were so many people in the comments educating you, stop it https://t.co/6NHfiRpaG0
— Noluthando Zuma (@thandozuma_) May 6, 2021
“Lol! You chose to ignore people who shared articles, educating you in the comments section, so pls!” said @lee_jikijela.
Lol! You chose to ignore people who shared articles, educating you in the comments section, so pls! https://t.co/jWSvR918R2
— Lindo (@lee_jikijela) May 6, 2021
“My beloved, you're responsible for your own learning. Sikhathele nathi ukufundisana nabantu abadala,” said @SibuBailey.
My beloved, you're responsible for your own learning. Sikhathele nathi ukufundisana nabantu abadala ♥️ https://t.co/eSqVi6aAGJ
— Sibu 🏳️🌈 (@SibuBailey) May 6, 2021
“We are tired of educating people Thuso,” said @somilacaba.
We are tired of educating people Thuso https://t.co/KPAlVRy1CG
— somi (@somilacaba) May 6, 2021
Thuso was recently featured in Essence Magazine as the new face to watch, and she also bagged her first cover feature in the US with Emmy Magazine.
In an interview with Candice Frederick, the Emmy Award-nominee speaks about the road that led to “The Underground Railroad”, an American series where she plays Cora.
She also shed light on the significance behind the words “Faith, Love, Hope”, which is tattooed on her collar bone.