Billy Porter Criticized for Biden Hand Kiss
Billy Porter is receiving backlash for greeting U.S. President Joe Biden with a kiss on the hand at the White House’s early Juneteenth Holiday celebration and concert on Monday. The holiday celebration, hosted by Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, included singers Gladys Knight, Patti LaBelle and rapper Doug E. Fresh.
Porter, a Tony, Grammy and Emmy nominee, sat in the front row, beside Harris’ husband, Douglas Emhoff. The Pose star reached over Harris and Emhoff to kiss Biden’s hand.
The moment has caught the attention of social media, particularly since he is set to co-write, co-produce, and lead act in a forthcoming biopic about the famed writer, James Baldwin.
With books like Notes of a Native Son, and many open letters and essays addressing American politics and ideals, Baldwin was deeply connected to the civil rights movement, arguing that in order for white Americans to celebrate freedom, they must also reckon with their history of slavery and racism.
In a 1963 letter to his nephew, Baldwin wrote of the United States: “the country is celebrating one hundred years of freedom one hundred years too soon.�…
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