Puerto Rico, you lovely island. While presenting at the WSJ Innovator Awards in New York, Aubrey Plaza had a message for comedian Tony Hinchcliffe, who went viral after calling Puerto Rico “a floating island of garbage in the middle of the ocean” at Donald Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally. Her words were blunt: “Go fuck yourself.”
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“I just wanted to very quickly respond to the racist joke that was made at that Trump rally about Puerto Rico, where most of my family is from,” said the Agatha All Along star while presenting an Innovator award to basketball player A’ja Wilson. “Thankfully, my sweet abuelita wasn’t here to hear that disgusting remark.”
She did, however, have a message for Hinchcliffe on behalf of her dearly departed grandmother. “But if she was alive today, I think she would say, ‘Tony Hinchcliffe, go fuck yourself,’” said Plaza. “And yes, the Wall Street Journal can quote me on that.” Her missive to Hinchcliffe received rapturous cheers and applause from the audience.
Plaza’s father is Puerto Rican, and her mother is of Scottish and Irish descent. Her paternal grandfather moving to the mainland when he was 17 years old. “I grew up around a lot of people pulling me in different directions, but there was an overarching theme of family on both sides,” Plaza told Vanity Fair in her June 2023 cover story. “Doesn’t matter who fucked up or what’s going on. So many crazy things were always happening, but we all have each other’s back at all times. And you know where you came from.”
She’s not the only celebrity who’s proud of where they came from. Plaza is one one of many celebrities to speak out against Hinchcliffe’s racist remarks. Puerto Rican stars including Bad Bunny, Jennifer Lopez and Ricky Martin condemned Hinchcliffe’s remarks and pledged their support to Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris, urging voters to vote for Harris in the forthcoming election. According to the Pew Research Center, the Latinx population will account for an estimated 14.7 percent of eligible voters nationwide by November, which is an all-time high.
A comedian and podcaster, Hinchcliffe was born in Youngstown, Ohio and cites Joe Rogan and Jeff Ross as comedic influencers and mentors in the industry. He’s appeared on a number of Comedy Central roasts, most recently Netflix’s The Greatest Roast of All Time: Tom Brady and also hosts the live podcast Kill Tony. In response to the outrage and Democratic VP candidate Tim Walz condemning his remarks, Hinchcliffe posted the following on X: “These people have no sense of humor. Wild that a vice presidential candidate would take time out of his ‘busy schedule’ to analyze a joke taken out of context to make it seem racist. I love Puerto Rico and vacation there. I made fun of everyone…watch the whole set. I’m a comedian Tim…might be time to change your tampon.”
Following up a racist comment with a “time to change your tampon” joke in 2024? It might be time for Hinchcliffe to update his material—or do away with it altogether.
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