Nationwide — George Floyd’s family has spoken out after a joke referencing his death was made during Kevin Hart’s Netflix roast featuring comedian Tony Hinchcliffe. They said the segment was insensitive and added more pain, especially as Floyd’s daughter Gianna continues to deal with bullying at school.
According to TMZ, a spokesman for The Gianna and George Floyd Foundation, Travis Cains, criticized the situation and said Kevin Hart’s involvement made it worse. He called it “sad for the culture,” and said it deepened the ongoing hurt surrounding Floyd’s death and legacy.
During the Netflix roast, Tony Hinchcliffe included George Floyd in a joke while roasting Kevin Hart on stage. He said, “The Black community is so proud of you… right now George Floyd is looking up at us all laughing so hard he can’t breathe,” a line that drew strong backlash.
The controversy also connects to a previous appearance by Hinchcliffe at the Tom Brady roast. In that set, he joked that Rob Gronkowski “looked like the final boss in George Floyd the video game,” which also triggered criticism when it resurfaced.
Family and friends of George Floyd said Kevin Hart should have stepped in and stopped jokes involving Floyd’s name. They also said they were disturbed by what they described as repeated use of Floyd’s death as material for comedy, while Gianna Floyd, now 12 years old, continues facing bullying at school.
The foundation released a statement saying, “We are trying to rebuild things for our community and make things better in our community. Let’s try to be a little bit more positive and not sit up there doing colon inspections by white comedians.”