"What happened today to [Jussie Smollett] must never be tolerated in this country,"
Biden tweeted. "We must stand up and demand that we no longer give this hate safe harbor; that homophobia and racism have no place on our streets or in our hearts. We are with you, Jussie."
"The vicious attack on actor Jussie Smollett was an attempted modern-day lynching. I'm glad he's safe,"
Booker tweeted. "To those in Congress who don't feel the urgency to pass our Anti-Lynching bill designating lynching as a federal hate crime –I urge you to pay attention."
"The recent racist and homophobic attack on acclaimed actor and activist Jussie Smollett is troubling. The rise in hate crimes is directly linked to President Donald J. Trump’s racist and xenophobic rhetoric," Johnson said in a statement. "It is dangerous for any society to allow a tone of divisiveness and hatred to dominate the political discourse. As this rhetoric continues to bleed into our everyday lives, dangerous behavior will continue to place many law-abiding individuals at risk." As if that were not enough, the
NAACP president compared Trump's rhetoric to "terrorism." He concluded, "We pray for a full physical and mental recovery Jussie Smollett and many unnamed victims of this forum of hate based terrorism."
Chad Griffin, president of the HRC (
Human Rights Committee), not only failed to question the Empire star's story, but described the attack as part of a trend. "This shocking attack on our friend and tremendous advocate Jussie Smollett is, unfortunately, not an isolated incident," Griffin said in a statement. "There is an alarming epidemic of hate violence in our country that disproportionately targets Black people, LGBTQ people, and religious minorities —and particularly those living at the intersections of multiple identities."
The LGBT activist group
GLAAD said that it "stands with Jussie and against such hate violence." "Our hearts are with Jussie Smollett as he recovers from a hate-motivated and repugnant attack in Chicago," GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis said in a statement. "Jussie has always used his voice and talent to create a better world, and it is disgusting that anyone, especially someone who has done such good for so many, would be targeted by undeniable hatred."
The American Civil Liberties Union (
ACLU) also condemned the "racism and homophobia" behind the alleged attack on the Empire star. "LGBTQ people of color live at multiple intersections of oppression, too often facing violence compounded by both racism and homophobia," the ACLU tweeted. "This isn't the America we want to live in. Our thoughts are with Jussie Smollett and all survivors."
"Hate crimes (especially against LGBTQ+ and black people) are increasing," the
SPLC tweeted, believing his story verbatim. "Actor Jussie Smollett, who is both black and gay, was attacked by two men who allegedly shouted, 'This is MAGA country!' after they beat him and put a rope around his neck."
Will They Retract? 9 Prominent Liberals Used the Jussie Smollett Attack to Slam Trump and Anti-LGBT Hate. But Police Now Think Smollett’s Story Is a Hoax