A CNN political commentator, who previously served as a top Biden campaign aide, was blasted on social media over a comment discussing the death of O.J. Simpson and what he “represented” to the “Black community.”
“He wasn’t a social justice leader, but he represented something for the Black community in that moment in that trial, particularly because there were two White people killed,” Ashley Allison, who served as a senior policy adviser in the Obama White House and served as the national coalitions director for the 2020 Biden-Harris campaign, said. “And the history around how Black people have been persecuted during slavery. There were just so many layers.
“I guess I would just close with this. There was racial tension then, there is racial tension now. It might not be the backdrop of the Trump campaign, but until this country is ready to actually have an honest conversation about the racial dynamics from our origin story until today, we will always have moments like O.J. Simpson that manifest. And our country will always be divided if we don’t actually deal with the issue of race.”
Allison was quickly criticized on social media over her remark.
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Ashley Allison, (Left) and O.J. Simpson (Right) (Getty Images)
“Not a single @CNN panelist pushes back on @ashleyrallison here when she admits it was ok that OJ murdered his wife and her friend because they were white,” Daily Caller columnist Mary Rooke posted on X. “Unbelievable.”
“Insane!” Comedian Tim Young posted on X. “CNN commentator praises OJ Simpson… saying he “represented something” to the black community because he murdered white people… Flip the races and put this segment on Fox News, and there would be rioting.”
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“They’re continuing to say the quiet part out loud,” one X commenter wrote.
“Absolutely unhinged racism,” said another user.
Murder defendant O.J. Simpson, center, listens to the not guilty verdict with his attorneys F. Lee Bailey, left, and Johnnie Cochran Jr., right. (Myung J. Chun/AFP/Getty Images)
CNN did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Simpson died April 10 at the age of 76, his family announced Thursday.
“On April 10th, our father, Orenthal James Simpson, succumbed to his battle with cancer,” the Simpson family posted on X. “He was surrounded by his children and grandchildren. During this time of transition, his family asks that you please respect their wishes for privacy and grace.”
Simpson was widely regarded as a legendary running back — and perhaps one of the best running backs of all time — but his fame was eclipsed by the double murder trial of his ex-wife and her friend.
O.J. Simpson holds up his hands before the jury on June 21, 1995, after putting on a new pair of gloves similar to the infamous bloody gloves during his double-murder trial in Los Angeles. (Vince Bucci/Pool/AP)
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He became embroiled in a murder trial following a June 1994 arrest for the brutal slayings of ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ron Goldman. Simpson was 46 years old at the time.
His status as an accused double murderer rocked the country, and his courtroom trials captivated households. His fall from grace continued throughout the mid-’90s and early 2000s.
Fox News Digital’s Lawrence Richard contributed to this report
