Wendy Williams Needs to Apologize for Uncomfortable Swavy Segment, According to His Brother
The family of the late TikTok star Swavy is demanding Wendy Williams apologize for a bizarre [...]
The family of the late TikTok star Swavy is demanding Wendy Williams apologize for a bizarre segment that aired on The Wendy Williams Show on July 7. Williams went on a strange rant about how Swavy was a person she never heard of but had more social media followers than she did before revealing to her audience that Swavy was murdered. The segment sparked widespread outrage on social media, and his family has called on Williams to apologize.
Swavy's older brother, Rahkim Clark, spoke with TMZ on Sunday, sharing his anger at Williams for making light of their real-life tragedy in her Hot Topics segment. "It's one thing to take public knowledge and put it out there, but you gave a false narrative, gave a false story, painted him as a thug, as a drug dealer, or as someone who was out here trying to be in the streets or anything like that, but that wasn't the type of person he was," Clark said, noting that Williams showed no empathy towards Swavy's family. "Words cannot explain how I feel," Clark told TMZ. "I'm so angry. I'm so upset."
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Swavy, whose real name was Matima Miller, was shot and killed on July 5 in Wilmington, Delaware before 11 a.m. He was 19. His mother, Chanelle Clark, told CBS Philadelphia she had to watch Swavy's final moments. She also expressed her frustration with Williams' segment. "Look at my eyes and stuff," Chanelle said. "Y'all, like as a mother, Wendy Williams, how dare you? So disrespectful. I used to watch you as a child and even though you have a gossip show and all that, you didn't even know my son."
Although they are angry with Williams, Swavy's siblings are more focused on seeking justice for their younger brother. "I never knew how big he was until he was put into this situation, but one thing I will say is people did give him his flowers while he was here," his sister, Qua'naijha Clark, told CBS Philadelphia. Swavy's family also established a GoFundMe account, which has raised over $23,000 so far for funeral and other costs.
During Williams' July 7 episode, she started her Hot Topics segment by talking complaining about Swavy having more TikTok followers than she does. She told her audience she had no idea who he was, then asked her audience to clap if they knew who he was. The studio went silent. At the end of the segment, Williams finally mentioned that Swavy was murdered. The segment quickly caused outrage on Twitter, with some even calling for Williams' show to be canceled. Williams has not issued a public statement. Swavy's brother told TMZ she never reached out to them.