Yahoo Movies ‘The View': Whoopi Goldberg Slams Justice Alito’s Quip About Black Santa and Ku Klux Klan: ‘Why Are You Even Still on the Court?’ (Video)
Whoopi Goldberg had some pointed words for Justice Samuel Alito during Tuesday’s episode of “The View,” questioning why he’s still sitting on the Supreme Court, after making a quip in a recent case about a hypothetical scenario in which a Black man playing Santa Claus had to encounter a child wearing a Ku Klux Klan uniform.
The topic came as the women were discussing the case of a graphic designer in Colorado, who has revealed that she plans to refuse to work on same-sex weddings — no one has asked her to yet — because she feels it violates her religious and artistic freedom. The case is currently being tried before the Supreme Court, with arguments beginning on Monday.
For the most part, Whoopi disagreed with the woman’s stance, saying that she doesn’t have to believe in gay marriage personally, but she shouldn’t get the right to refuse others because of it.
“The outcome of this is people saying, ‘I don’t want to serve you because you’re Black. I don’t want to serve you because you’re gay. I don’t want to serve you because you’re a woman, and you’re not acting the way a woman should,'” Whoopi said. “So whose rights are we protecting? What the hell is going on with the Supreme Court that they don’t recognize what this is?”
On the topic at large, the hosts were a bit split, with some arguing that cases like this can be a slippery slope. But Sunny Hostin honed in on remarks made by Alito in the first day of arguments on Monday.
During the proceedings, Alito asked whether a Black Santa at the mall is obligated to take a picture with a child dressed up in a Ku Klux Klan robe, regardless of his beliefs, which was answered with a no, because KKK outfits are not protected characteristics under accommodation laws.
Justice Elena Kagan later asked if the Santa could still deny the request regardless of the child’s race. Alito then sniped back, “You do see a lot of Black children in Ku Klux Klan outfits, right?”
At that, Whoopi guffawed, saying “Why are you even still on the court man?” while Hostin criticized that as “right-wing humor.”
You can watch the full segment from “The View” in the video above.
