Loose Women fans were left furious with Janet Street-Porter after she discussed racism in Ukraine with fellow panellist Charlene White.
Host Charlene led the conversation on the racism and prejudice faced by black people currently residing in Ukraine during Tuesday’s episode of the ITV daytime show and began by asking how the crisis in Ukraine has affected each of her co-stars.
She discussed the “incessant racism” towards black and Asian people as they have attempted to leave the country.
“You’ve got thousands of black, Asian, Syrian and Arab students and workers who have been also trying to get out of Ukraine and have been prevented from doing so due to the incessant racism they have experienced,” Charlene said.
(Image: ITV)
“They’ve not been allowed to go through borders, quite a few of them have not been allowed to go through the border to Poland, for example.”
The ITV star went on to discuss a black British student called Korrine Sky who has been tweeting about the conflict during the past week, saying that she has been pushed back by people who think black people belong at the “back of the bus”.
Charlene said her “heart goes out to the Ukrainian people and those in bordering countries” but said that this kind behaviour is a “very clear reflection of what the world is dealing with” especially when it comes to “migrant workers”.
(Image: ITV)
Janet interrupted Charlene as she expressed her thoughts, saying that she “understood what Charlene was saying” because she had “seen on the news how badly they had been treated”, but thinks that “Poland has exceeded all expectations in accepting 150,000 refugees.”
Charlene shook her head and said: “Goodness me, I understand that, but if you have thousands of refugees you can’t stand there and say: “Oh, you 50 people come in, you four people with darker skin, sorry [you can’t come in].”
(Image: ITV)
Fans wrote about the exchange on Twitter, with one user saying: “Love what Charlene is highlighting on Loose Women.
“You need to remove Janet from your panel immediately, she has no compassion and is a troublemaker. Do the right thing.”
Another wrote: “Time for Janet to retire. Her comments show how out of touch she is with racism.”
“I can not believe that I just watched Janet Street-Porter gaslight Charlene White live on TV,” said a third viewer.
Daily Star has reached out to representatives for both ITV and Janet for a comment.
Loose Women airs weekdays on ITV at 12.30pm
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
