Whoopi Goldberg says sorry for claiming the Holocaust ‘isn’t about race’

Whoopi Goldberg was met with huge backlash after her comments regarding the Holocaust on US talk show The View on Monday

Whoopi Goldberg has offered her “sincerest apologies” being slammed for her comments regarding the Holocaust.

The veteran US talk show host, 66, claimed the tragedy “isn’t about race” but he thoughts were widely criticised.

The View presenter said Jewish people around the world have “always had my support” in a statement after a barrage of blasts by livid Internet users.

The presenter co-hosts The View on ABC and had said the historic atrocity was about “man’s inhumanity to man”.

She made the comments on the show during a discussion about a Tennessee school board’s decision to ban Pulitzer prize-winning Holocaust graphic novel Maus.

Following the show, she took to Twitter to issue a statement on the events. She said: “On today’s show I said the Holocaust ‘is not about race, but about man’s inhumanity to man’. I should have said it is about both.

“As Jonathan Greenblatt from of the Anti-Defamation League shared, ‘The Holocaust was about the Nazi’s systematic annihilation of the Jewish people – who they deemed to be an inferior race’. I stand corrected.

“The Jewish people around the world have always had my support and that will never (waver). I am sorry for the hurt I have caused.
“Written with my sincerest apologies. Whoopi Goldberg.”

Whoopi had originally said: “Let’s be truthful, the Holocaust isn’t about race, it’s not. It’s about man’s inhumanity to man, that’s what it’s about. These are two groups of white people.”

She continued: “You’re missing the point… let’s talk about it for what it really is. It’s about how people treat each other.

“It’s a problem. It doesn’t matter if you’re black or white, Jews…everybody eats each other.”

Her comments were quickly condemned by activists online following the show’s broadcast, who said the were “dangerous”.

Responding to her comments Mr Greenblatt, the ADL’s chief executive, said: “No Whoopi Goldberg…(the Nazis) dehumanised them and used this racist propaganda to justify slaughtering 6 million Jews.

“Holocaust distortion is dangerous.”

StopAntisemitism.org said Goldberg’s comments had “minimised” the trauma and suffering caused by the atrocity.

“Newsflash @WhoopiGoldberg 6 million of us were gassed, starved and massacred because we were deemed an inferior race by the Nazis,” the organisation wrote.

“How dare you minimise our trauma and suffering!”

The organisation followed up Whoopi’s comments by refusing to accept the apology, writing: “No you don’t get any easy out on Twitter.

“Millions of viewers witnessed your Holocaust revisionism today. Please apologize and correct this horrific distortion tomorrow ON AIR.

“In addition bring actual Holocaust survivors to speak in order to make this a truly teachable moment.”

Whoopi’s comments seemed to divide her followers too, with many agreeing with Stop Antisemitism’s comments and others thanking her for her apology.

One fan commented: “Sometimes we all misspeak. Your intentions were correct just expressed incorrectly. Thank you.”