The word “thug” was thrown around a lot on cable television in the wake of Seattle Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman’s controversial post-NFC championship game a couple weeks ago.
Sherman has been critical of the word’s use, comparing it to a racial slut.
“It seems like it’s the accepted way of calling somebody the N-word nowadays,” said Sherman in a press conference.
Now one Fox News anchor is changing his tune on the issue.
Geraldo Rivera, who has come under fire in the past for referring to slain teen Trayvon Martin as a thug, now admits that the word has uncomfortable racial connotations.
“I called Richard Sherman a thug when he ranted about Michael Crabtree. He said the use of the word thug was the new N-word. I pondered that. I have come to agree with Richard Sherman, the Stanford grad. I will never use the word thug in that context again,” said Rivera on Fox News’ Fox & Friends.
Rivera has been widely criticized for linking hoodies like the one worn by Martin on the night of his depth to the perception that a young person is a criminal.
The Fox host said this past July: “You dress like a thug, people are going to treat you like a thug. That’s true. I stand by that.”