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Ellen DeGeneres has come under fire after comparing quarantine in her multi-million dollar mansion to “being in jail.”
The American television presenter made the comment during a virtual show filmed by his wife, actress Portia de Rossi, from one of his California homes after his talk show was taken off the air due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“One thing I learned from being quarantined is that people, this is like being in jail, it is what it is,” he said.
Ellen DeGeneres and wife, actress Portia de Rossi
DeGeneres, who made the show from an easy chair overlooking vast lawns and mountains, added: “It is mainly because I have been wearing the same clothes for 10 days and we are all gay here.”
Despite praising health workers and others on the front lines COVID-19Some viewers described the host’s comments as “deaf in tone” and “insensitive.”
One wrote: “Sitting inside her fifteen million dollar mansion complaining and comparing her to a prison, ellen sordo.”
The 62-year-old comedian’s comments come at a time when a surge number of inmates are testing positive for coronavirus throughout the United States.
The video was originally posted on The Ellen Show YouTube channel on Monday, but was re-uploaded on Wednesday with the offensive comments edited.
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More than 280 inmates and 400 employees in New York jails have been infected with COVID-19 and at least seven people have died, according to the New York Department of Corrections.
In Chicago, about 230 detainees in Cook County jails have tested positive for the virus, along with 92 staff members.
Coronavirus-related deaths among inmates have also been reported in Louisiana.
“I think we can all agree that what Ellen said was callous … She says ‘prison’ while on her multi-acre property in her multi-million dollar mansion, on her plush sofa with her well-fed dogs Nothing like the rich pretending that they are poor and suffering, “said a Twitter user.
Another wrote: “Hello @ TheEllenShow, prisoners in this country are being quarantined 24 hours in cells that are probably the size of one of their showers and others are sleeping 3 feet away from sick inmates. And they are dying. You are not experiencing anything close to prison. “
Others defended the star, and one person commented, “I’m sick of people coming for celebrities like @TheEllenShow. Ellen and all the celebrities who also feel like they’re ‘in jail’ have a work ethic that will blow your mind. Sitting on the couch every day like most of you is new to them. “
The backlash was the latest example that celebrities were called in for “tone deaf” comments and social media posts, with the pandemic that left millions of Americans out of work and killed more than 14,000 across the country.
Last month, actress Gal Gadot was criticized for leading a celebrity-filled song from Imagine by John Lennon in an attempt to cheer people on during the coronavirus pandemic.
Some users of social networks Nicknamed the video “shrug” and “muffled” when celebrities like Gadot, Natalie Portman, and Will Ferrell sang about not imagining their mansion’s possessions.
