It’s Not His Fault He Used the N-Word

When a man with Tourette’s yelled the slur at the BAFTAs, Hollywood reacted with disgust. They should’ve shown compassion.

By Kat Rosenfield – The Free Press

02.24.26 — The Big Read

Kat Rosenfield is a culture writer at The Free Press and the author of five novels, including the Edgar-nominated No One Will Miss Her.

5 mins

Produced by ElevenLabs using AI narration

Amid the glitz and glam of awards season, the BAFTA Film Awards are usually treated like the annoying little brother—or odd, distant cousin—of the much more prestigious Academy Awards and the much more intoxicated Golden Globes. But this year, a surprise outburst at Sunday night’s BAFTA ceremony has them trending in the discourse on two continents, after a man named John Davidson yelled a racial slur (yes, that racial slur) at actors Michael B. Jordan and Delroy Lindo as they presented the award for Special Visual Effects.

Davidson, 54, is afflicted with Tourette’s syndrome, a neurological condition whose symptoms cause involuntary tics, including coprolalia—or, to the layperson, shouting swear words. A film based on Davidson’s life, rather providentially titled I Swear, was up for six BAFTAs that night; the audience had been alerted that someone with Tourette’s was in the building, and BAFTAs host Alan Cumming acknowledged the outburst with an apology from the stage. But Davidson’s involuntary shout was picked up by the cameras, as were Lindo and Jordan flinching a bit in response, fueling a controversy that has continued to escalate in the days since.

Within 24 hours of the incident, two distinct teams had emerged: Anti-Racists on one side, Anti-Ableists on the other, locked in battle over who had been the victim of the greater offense.

My cmnt: Enjoy Cartman’s take on Tourette’s syndrome below.