Tom Hanks’ son, Chet Hanks, has stepped up to defend himself after unintentionally sparking a hateful meme.
Chet first made the “White Boy Summer” joke, a reference to Megan Thee Stallion’s “Hot Girl Summer” and the seasonal meme “Christian Girl Autumn.”
“I have a feeling this summer is going to be a white person’s summer,” Chet wrote at the time. “Take it what you will, but I’m not talking about white people like Trump or Nascar. I’m talking about me.” [rappers] John B. Jack Harlow type white boys, you know what I mean.”
However, this seemingly harmless joke has since backfired, with reports suggesting the phrase has been adopted by white supremacists.
“Over the past few months, white supremacists and neo-Nazis have called for the destruction of the Pride flag.[N-word] Communist and paramilitary groups were formed under the slogan “White Boy Summer,” the report said. Global Project Against Hatred and Extremism read.
It suggested that several extremist groups were using the slogan to “spread propaganda, recruit new members and promote targeted hate campaigns, including acts of vandalism and hate incidents.”
Chet later fired back, posting a statement on Instagram: “White Boy Summer was created to be fun, playful and celebrate cool white boys who love beautiful queens of all races. It is disappointing that it has been twisted to support hatred and bigotry towards any group of people and I condemn it. I hope we can all spread love and treat one another with kindness and dignity.”
Chet Hanks/Instagram
In 2021, Hanks made “White Boy Summer” in an attempt to bring some summer cheer during the COVID-19 pandemic, but with very specific rules.
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