Ellen DeGeneres responds after being called a racist for posting Usain Bolt meme

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Ellen DeGeneres has responded after backlash erupted over a meme that she posted of herself riding on Usain Bolt’s back.

–Tyrese Gibson: If Oscars blackballed gays Ellen DeGeneres wouldn’t host

She captioned the image, “This is how I’m running errands from now on,” but many commenters suggested there was in inherent racism in the image of a white woman riding on the back of a black man, if not total insensitivity.

https://twitter.com/barnor_hesse/status/765691456207990784

https://twitter.com/ira/status/765365032045596672

Others said the anger was a total overreaction.

https://twitter.com/KudntBeBetter/status/765833917307953152

 

–‘Ellen’ parody of Nicki Minaj’s upcoming TV show makes a lot of folks uncomfortable

Following the massive backlash, DeGeneres took to Twitter to defend herself: “I am highly aware of the racism that exists in our country. It is the furthest thing from who I am.”

 

Usain Bolt retweeted DeGeneres’ original meme.  He was a guest on The Ellen Show last November, where he ran a race against young Jamaican YouTube sensation Demarjay Smith.

–Hillary Clinton learns to dab on ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’

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