To think John Davidson and BAFTA owe an apology

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I have sympathy for anyone with Tourette’s. I genuinely do. It’s a difficult condition and I’m not for one second suggesting John Davidson is a bad person or that he chose to say what he said. But sympathy for a condition doesn’t mean the impact on others gets ignored.

Intent matters but so does impact. If I accidentally stand on someone’s foot I still say sorry, even though I didn’t mean to do it. “I didn’t mean it” and “I acknowledge I hurt you” are not mutually exclusive. I wouldn’t get annoyed at the suggestion of apologising simply because I didn’t mean it, so why is this different? Especially as it was a public stage in front of millions. I don’t expect John to apologise every day in normal interactions, but at such a public forum - he should. Michael B Jordan looked visibly devastated. It was so sad.

When he saw two Black men and the n-word came out — not H**ky at the white hosts for example, not some other neutral word, the n-word directed at Black people in the room — that caused real harm to real people. Tourette’s tics are shaped by what the brain reaches for as most “forbidden” in a given moment, and what it reached for when he saw two Black men was a racial slur aimed at them. That raises really uncomfortable questions about unconscious bias that most people would rather sidestep entirely.

It doesn’t make him a conscious racist. But it does make it a conversation worth having, because our unconscious associations don’t come from nowhere — they’re shaped by everything we’ve absorbed over a lifetime. That connotation being the first place his brain went is something that deserves acknowledgement, not just a pass because of the diagnosis. And as a POC, I have to be honest — this is heartbreaking. Not just the incident itself but what it represents.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to explain to white friends and colleagues that certain spaces feel uncomfortable, that you notice the stares, that you carry this constant low level awareness of how you might be being perceived. And so often the response is “you’re imagining it” or “you’re being too sensitive.” You get gaslit into doubting your own lived experience. Well — moments like this are exactly why it isn’t in our heads. This is the reality POC navigate every single day. Always on alert. Always doing that mental calculation of whether someone is judging you for the colour of your skin. That emotional labour is exhausting and largely invisible to people who’ve never had to carry it.

John thanking the audience for their “understanding” puts the burden entirely on those who were hurt to just get over it. That’s not the same as acknowledging the pain caused. AIBU to think a bit more than “thanks for understanding” was needed here — from both of them?

You have said more than once that segregation was inappropriate to use and gone on about how black people were segregated in the past, even though the same is true for disabled people and was even mentioned on one plot where you said it was the wrong word to use...

Sorry if I’ve missed this but….

Why do black people call each other the N word? Not saying they shouldn’t or that it should be ok for anyone to if they use it to each other just genuinely curious, but surely this then comes down to context.

Black person calls another black person N word in conversation, used in music etc, it’s not being used as an insult. Not racist.

White person calls a black person N word with intent to hurt/abuse/offend and be racist. Racist.

Surely someone with an involuntary tic using the word (no intent to abuse or offend). Not racist.

As you said. Just because they might use it, doesn't mean it's acceptable for other races to do so, and tic or not, when aired during an awards ceremony instead of being bleeped out, it's caused upset.

This is horrific. Who would've thought in the year 2026 we'd be reading this kind of rhetoric? Absolutely disgusting.

It is absolutely inappropriate to claim that JD was being segregated when he left the hall. I will die on that hill.

The worst is, that's not an isolated tweet. There are a sea of them in a similar vein.

Henrietta Lacks was one of the few black people treated at Johns Hopkins at the time. Her cells weren’t ‘stolen’ they were removed during treatment for cervical cancer and used for research. She wasn’t asked for her consent to use the cells because that wasn’t protocol at the time and the procedure was standard practice with all patients who had tissue removed during treatment. The cells were named the HeLa cell line after Henrietta and were the first so called immortal cells, still alive today. They did not provide a cure for cancer but revolutionised research in the field of viruses, cancer treatments and vaccines among others Her family received an out of court settlement in respect of the decades long unauthorised use of her cells in research.

It’s fascinating stuff but how is it relevant to the history of disabled people and their struggles, which was the subject of the post you were replying to ?

Don’t be silly -
they weren’t expecting to hear a racial slur while they were accepting an award - horrible

and for JD to have to leave is heartbreaking

there are two wrongs that could have been foreseen and discussed before all parties were put in a terrible situation

You can die on that hill, doesn't make it right

What about the very real threats of violence that have been made against him?

Are those also "inappropriate" to mention because of lynching in the past?

People are saying “how come that word was in his vocabulary?” as if he could only know it if he was racist. I’m saying that in the past several decades it would be much more common to hear it in rap / film than shouted in the street by racists. Speaking as a middle class Scottish person…

They were aware someone with Tourettes was present and that he might shout out offensive things. The risk was identified and people were made aware. It wasn't a surprise

"They didn't consent" is explicitly implying that everyone should have been asked if it was OK for a disabled man to be there

(They also weren't accepting an award at the time but presenting)

Not intentional. You know that.

What would your reaction be if a hay fever sufferer unintentionally sneezed in your face?

The threats of violence are vile and those making them should be arrested if possible, or at least cautioned. Though because its X, nothing will happen.

And how do you think it should have been handled, because the tone of your post suggests that JD should not have been ‘allowed’ to attend ?

In what world is editing his remarks not censorship ? What reason is there for doing so ?

Two possible scenarios:

The word is a racial slur. Nope, not in this context. There was no intent to be racist - the word was shouted involuntarily as a result of disability.

It caused offence. Maybe, but for rational, intelligent, compassionate and considerate human beings the offence would likely have been short lived once they realised the circumstances and that there was no intent to offend.

Censorship isn’t the answer. Education is. And if we’re going to sanitise the very real and often grim effects of disability for public consumption without offence, there’s not much of a lesson left to learn.

Thus referencing Rosa Parks. The point here is that it matters not whether he was forced to leave or went of his own accord. He was unable to stay because regardless of the fact that his remarks were the product of disability he was making people uncomfortable.

In my face? Like, droplets and all? Then frankly, I'd expect them to apologise, because unintended or not, that's really gross and now I have their bodily fluids on my face.

Fair enough. I think everyone knows the word, from both racist and media uses, although the former came first, obviously.

Rap music might be the first exposure to that word for today’s youngsters but definitely not for someone of Johns age. I’m of a similar vintage and first came across it in nursery rhymes and fiction (Enid Blyton). It was also in books on the high school syllabus. Also watched ‘roots’ in the 70s and questionable ‘comedy’. There won’t be anyone that doesn’t know that word.

Didn’t hear it in popular music until the late 80s/90s.

Agatha Christie.

That's brought back a memory! I'm in my late 30s, but reading that book 'And Then There Were None' as it was called when I read it, although the poem was the same, was actually my first exposure to the word, at age 8. It made for an awkward conversation with my mother!

Yep but would you expect a blind or deaf person to apologise if they didn’t acknowledge your presence? They knew he had Tourette’s and to apologise for every slur or bad word isn’t reasonable as he’d be saying it all the time.

I really feel sick now - John has an Instagram account that he uses for his tourettes awareness advocacy.
The trolls have found it, and are posting hundreds of hateful comments. I'm sorry but those people aren't hurt or in pain, they are gleeful and delighting in tormenting him.

In the meantime, there is genuine fear and conern for him being discussed within the Tourettes Scotland group.

This has gone way, way too far.

That is very sad, hope he has support to get through it

I think both things can be true.

What he said was involuntary and is no reflection on him, his character or his beliefs.

The word will impact and hurt people regardless of intent.

Both are deserving of sensitivity, grace and understanding. But I don't believe it's the general publics place to demand an apology from John Davidson. He has already issued a statement expressing his regret at what happened. He should not have to apologise for his disability.
The failing is with the BBC for not editing it out, they should be subject to this onslaught not John Davidson.

Some of the comments I have read on Instagram and X have been just vile and indicate a serious lack of awareness for the lived experience of others. I think it's a worrying sign of peoples increasing inclination to destroy and tear people down rather than be open to learning and understanding.