By Leslie Lim

Staff Writer

Only two days after he confirmed he would be the 91st host of the Oscars, Kevin Hart, on Dec. 6 announced he would be stepping down from the position as tweets from his past were unearthed to be homophobic and bigoted. Kevin Hart needs to formally apologize to the black LGBTQ community and make the proper reparations in order to fix the damage he has caused.

  While Hart has refused to apologize for his tweets at the urging of the Oscars committee because he “addressed this many times” before, Vulture, an entertainment news outlet, has found that Hart had never previously apologized. Hart had not apologized for his offensive actions, instead he had apologized that people were offended. This type of apology is completely unacceptable as it shows Hart’s refusal to acknowledge his mistakes and places blame on to the communities that he hurt.

   Adding on to the controversy is a 2010 comedy show released by Hart called “Seriously Funny.” In one joke of his segment, Hart states “One of my biggest fears is my son growing up and being gay. That’s a fear. Keep in mind, I’m not homophobic, I have nothing against gay people, be happy. […] But me, being a heterosexual male, if I can prevent my son from being gay, I will.”

  Hart did eventually apologize on Twitter for his past tweets, stating that he is “sorry for hurting people” and that he “sincerely apologizes to the LGBTQ community to his insensitive words from the past.” However, many people have seen such an apology as Hart making little effort to repair the damage his words have caused.

  “I don’t see any meaningful outreach to the LGBT community” said Don Lemon, CNN anchor and member of the LGBTQ community, “Apologizing and continuing does not make the world better for people who are gay or transgender. Being an ally does.”

  As a leader in the black community, Hart should understand that that his handling of past transgressions towards the LGBTQ community hurts the black LGBTQ community in particular. This is completely the opposite of what needs to be done to repair the harm that has been done.

  Hart is perpetuating the stereotype that black people, men especially, should not be LGBTQ. Violence towards black LGBTQ people is rising. According to NBC News, LGBT homicides doubled in 2017, and 31 out of the 52 people that were killed were black. Hart consistently refusing to formally apologize can have violent consequences.

  “The reason there can’t be true accountability for individuals like Kevin Hart is because the […] individuals mostly addressing him aren’t the ones directly impacted — the black LGBTQ community.” writes Ernest Owens of Vox.

  In order to make reparations, Hart should not only genuinely apologize but also communicate with advocates of the black LGBTQ community in order to understand the negative impact he has caused.  The queer community needs support and Hart formally apologizing would be inspiring for the black LGBTQ people that need the most assistance.