Defending the actor, she mentioned how this form of humor is not only damaging to her as a woman but is also insulting to many people with disabilities.
In case you missed her on The Good Place, Jameela Jamil has been famous for a hot minute. With her roles in the show aforementioned, DC League of Super-Pets and now She-Hulk: Attorney at Law, she has managed to become a household name. But there is another thing that often makes headlines when it comes to Jameela Jamil, and it is her activism.
When the internet started producing memes that essentially implied that Lea Michele can’t read, Jameela Jamil sought to take a stand against that kind of narrative, BuzzFeed reported. Mainly the fact that the internet has seen the humor in this through an ableist perspective. She wrote in her Instagram post, “Whatever your issue with someone, and I don’t know this woman, or anything about her but laughing at the idea that *anyone* not being able to read makes YOU look like a prick. An elitist, ableist bore.”
While she didn’t mention Michele by name, the timing of the post and the seemingly similar phrasing of the meme made it clear enough what she was talking about. It is interesting to note that Jamil didn’t necessarily support Michele explicitly, she only pointed out that making jokes about not being able to read comes from a very narrow-minded perspective. “Some people can't read because of disability, learning disabilities, some can't because of a lack of access to education. Your words and actions also affect them,” she noted.
Michele, however, did address the rumors with New York Times. “I went to Glee every single day; I knew my lines every single day,” she said. “And then there’s a rumor online that I can’t read or write? It’s sad. It really is. I think often if I were a man, a lot of this wouldn’t be the case.” While this take is not necessarily wrong, it doesn’t take away the fact that there have been many co-stars specifically female co-stars who have expressed their disappointment in working with her.
Jameela's statement comes after Lea herself addressed the rumor in a profile earlier this week. https://t.co/P5YVR6AnYS
— BuzzFeed (@BuzzFeed) September 4, 2022
Samantha Ware, her colleague from Glee tweeted in 2020, “LMAO REMEMBER WHEN YOU MADE MY FIRST TELEVISON (sic) GIG A LIVING HELL?!?! CAUSE ILL NEVER FORGET. I BELIEVE YOU TOLD EVERYONE THAT IF TOU HAD THE OPPORTUNITY YOU WOULD “SHIT IN MY WIG!” AMONGST OTHER TRAUMATIC MICROAGRESSIONS (sic) THAT MADE ME QUESTION A CAREER IN HOLLYWOOD…” Along with her many actors and co-stars also came forward to talk about their experiences working with her. Dabier from Black Lightning also tweeted at her saying, “GIRL YOU WOULDNT LET ME SIT AT THE TABLE WITH THE OTHER CAST MEMBERS CAUSE “I DIDNT BELONG THERE” FU*K YOU LEA”
However, Michele did apologize for her behavior and decided not to engage with the crowd on Twitter.
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