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Nowadays, it seems like comedian and actress (and now author) Amanda Seales is always in the news and can’t catch a break from criticism. Is it fair, though? Or is it more good than bad? Let’s take a look back on the most controversial moments of the star thus far. Remember, she told you guys that she’s not for everybody.
The Uh-Oh: The #RodneyReed Drama
A lot has happened so we’ll simplify it for you.
There has recently been a call to action to clear the name of a Black man named Rodney Reed. The Innocence Project has been working for quite some time to try and free him after they say he was wrongly convicted of rape and murder. While on Death Row with a date of execution approaching quickly, he was granted an indefinite stay recently, meaning he was told that he no longer has an execution date.
Before that happened, many celebrities took to the Internet to raise awareness in the hopes of saving Reed. One of those celebrities included Seales.
Recently though, she made a video, which went viral, withdrawing her support and saying she would do better in the future about “rushing to the aid” of causes without enough knowledge. She said she researched the case herself and found that Reed had allegedly sexually assaulted a number of women, including a 12-year-old. She said those who have rallied for Reed went out of their way to hide such information in their attempts to keep him from being executed.
“The campaign to stay the execution of Rodney Reed and exonerate him was launched by supporters of Rodney Reed who believe him to be innocent of the murder of Stacey Stites,” she said. “This, I’m going to call it propaganda though, was presented to people like you and me with a very decisive, clear-cut intention to not include the entire bigger picture of Rodney Reed as he presents as a criminal and danger to women.”
“It feels very duplicitous that those who were pushing for this, not just his family, but individuals who fancy themselves activists were doing so with the knowledge that this person, Rodney Reed, is not just accused of, but has been linked to previous rapes via his DNA being discovered within the victim,” she added. “He has been ID’d by a woman who escaped him.”
Her video, though, drew the criticism of many, including activist Shaun King, who publicly called her out and claimed she was spreading misinformation. King and the Reed family said that most of the things she brought up have been debunked or dismissed. Others said that despite his alleged past, he still had the right to justice in the particular case that landed him on Death Row.
In conclusion, this situation was all one big mess.
