John Wayne's racist and homophobic 1971 Playboy interview resurfaces: 'I Believe in White Supremacy'

John Wayne, who died at age 72 in 1979, made headlines on Tuesday, February 19, after his racist and homophobic remarks resurfaced via Twitter.

Wayne expressed his views after taking aim at African American political activist Angela Davis. “With a lot of blacks, there’s quite a bit of resentment along with their dissent and rightfully so,” he told the publication. “But we can’t all of a sudden get down on our knees and turn everything over to the leadership of the blacks.”

He added: “I believe in white supremacy until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility. I don’t believe in giving authority and positions of leadership and judgement to irresponsible people.”

Wayne also claimed that “the academic community has developed certain tests that determine whether blacks are sufficiently equipped scholastically,” and “some blacks have tried to force the issue and enter college when they haven’t passed the tests and don’t have the requisite background.”

Although he expressed his support for African American actors, he told Playboy that he casts them in what he deems to be “proper” roles.

Wayne, who was known for his Western films, also slammed Native American Indians for their role in history. “I don’t feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from them. There were great numbers of people who needed new land and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves.”

Wayne also made insensitive remarks about LGBTQ representation in Hollywood, telling Playboy that he considers films like Midnight Cowboy and Easy Rider to be “perverted.”

“Wouldn’t you say that the wonderful love of those two men in Midnight Cowboy, a story about two fags, qualifies?”

At: https://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-news/news/john-waynes-racist-homophobic-playboy-interview-resurfaces/

John Wayne and his friend Ronald Reagan during Reagan's 1976 campaign.

As brash and brazen as his Hollywood persona, Wayne was in some ways a pioneer of the extremist New Right movement that took over the GOP after 1980.