Josh Hokit, a heavyweight UFC fighter, has defended remarks he made at a White House event last week in which he declared that Michelle Obama is a man. The comment drew mixed reactions from the crowd, with some laughter and boos, and was captured on camera as Donald Trump appeared to crack a half-smile in response.
When pressed about the remark this week on The Ariel Helwani Show, Hokit reframed his statement as a compliment rather than an insult. He explained that calling Obama a man was meant to praise her ability to handle adversity and work ethic, likening her toughness to stereotypically masculine traits. "Michelle Obama being a man, that's like, uh, she knows how to deal with adversity, know, she knows how to work hard like a man," Hokit said.
When Helwani questioned the logic of this framing and asked why Hokit had felt compelled to make the remark at all, the fighter shifted his justification. He pivoted to an argument about free speech, suggesting he was demonstrating the freedoms available in the United States. "I thought it was a perfect opportunity to, you know, show the world how great this country is with the freedom of speech," he stated, adding that he saw it as taking a jab at what he perceived as unequal treatment from "a certain side."
Hokit concluded by saying he stands by his words and has no regrets about the outburst.
The remark has drawn attention to the broader pattern of attacks on Michelle Obama and the way such rhetoric relates to the sexualization and masculinization of Black women. The fact that Trump has not publicly condemned Hokit's comment is notable given the president's long history of othering the Obama family, including spreading false birther conspiracy theories about Barack Obama and posting a now-deleted video depicting the couple as apes earlier this year.
UFC President Dana White, a close Trump ally, did distance the organization from Hokit's statement. "I understand that the Obamas are public figures, but I'm completely against saying nasty and false things about people's families," White told Time. He added, "Everyone knows my position on free speech, but I hate this kind of nonsense."
The attack on Obama mirrors similar conspiracy theories and jokes that have targeted other prominent Black women. Tennis champion Serena Williams and basketball player Brittney Griner have both addressed false online claims about their gender. More recently, actor Cynthia Erivo spoke about feeling her "humanity had been bastardized" after internet users joked she was serving as a bodyguard to her Wicked costar Ariana Grande, an assumption Erivo attributed to racist perceptions about Black women's bodies and roles.
Author James Rodriguez: "This is what happens when a president refuses to set a basic standard for decency: the bar doesn't just lower, it disappears."
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