Jamie Foxx accused of disrespecting deaf community

Actor Jamie Foxx has been accused by actor and deaf activist Nyle DiMarco of making fun of the deaf community following his appearance on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon".

DiMarco, winner of "America's Next Top Model" and "Dancing with the Stars", slammed Foxx for making up sign language and accused him of mocking the deaf community, reports aceshowbiz.com.

"Jamie Foxx, it is straight up disrespectful to make up sign language. Everything is in gibberish. Also Jimmy Fallon how was this allowed? Where's the cultural sensitivity. Not comedy when you make fun of others," DiMarco wrote on Twitter on Saturday.

DiMarco later wrote an open letter.

"Jamie Foxx's behavior with Jimmy Fallon on 'Fallon Tonight' should not be tolerated anywhere. We simply do not make fun at the expense of other cultures, especially those with a history of being marginalised. When we do this, progress takes a step backward," he said.

"Sign language is important to me because it's the bedrock of deaf culture. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities says sign language is a human right of deaf people, and out of the 70 million worldwide, only two per cent have access to education in sign language," he added.

--IANS

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