BD Wong apologized Monday for a racist joke he had posted — and has since deleted — on the social media platform Threads.
The joke in question was in response to a “Wrong Answers Only” post, where a user presents a prompt that others on the platform are encouraged to answer in comically incorrect ways. Influencer Mike Holston (@TheRealTarzann on Instagram and Threads) posted a video of an animal crawling over his neck and back as the “Stranger Things” theme song played in the background, with the caption “Name this animal … wrong answers only 🤣.” Holston, a Black man, appears in the video himself alongside the creature.
Though the response has since been deleted, Wong allegedly responded to the prompt by simply saying, “It appears to be a Black man.”
Wong quickly went on Threads to apologize for the racist comment against Holston, saying that he took the joke too far. Wong called his response to the “Wrong Answers Only” prompt a “Super Wrong” one, and apologized for the “#wtfbd” (or, “What the f–k, B.D.”) moment.
“Y’all I made a very bad joke. As most people in hot water do, I deleted it for Damage Control but it’s out there & continues to hurt & disappoint & I’m really sorry about the hurt part,” he said on Threads Monday. “Super dumb, but I tried to follow the ‘Wrong Answers Only’ prompt w/the wrongest answer. This succeeded only in that it was Super Wrong. I know nobody gets a free pass. I’m sorry if this #wtfbd moment tarnished any respect you may’ve had for me. & thanks if you advocate for an internet that’s safe for everybody.”
Wong made two distinct apology posts, in which he said he intended not to make excuses for his inappropriate joke. The comments of the posts featured a mix of users who accepted the apology and others who did not.
“I want to elaborate re a racist comment I posted, to clarify that I recognize & accept the responsibility for how terrible it is,” Wong said in his follow-up post. “It’s also wrong to try to ‘explain’ anything, & I think that causes a further breaking down in folks’ trust. Let me please spend the energy on how wrong I know it is to exploit a despicable, racist trope in the supposed spirit of humor; I do know better, but again no excuses. Very sorry for the hurt I’ve caused & for taking lightly something so deeply injurious.”
