Dealing with disinformation
A few years ago, someone took one of Mark’s Tweets out of context and used it to stir up trouble and spread disinformation about Mark Pellegrino. Every so often, someone shares the Tweet again, as happened in February when the zombie horde descended to attack Mark Pellegrino’s good name with false accusations. This post provides some context, with links to the Tweets that show what Mark said.
Is Mark Pellegrino racist?
No. Mark Pellegrino is not racist. Mark Pellegrino is not Islamophobic.
Mark is an individualist. He sees each person for who they are — their character, the choices they make — and not for things entirely outside of their control. An individualist like Mark would never judge anyone, either positively or negatively, for their race.
What did Mark Pellegrino say about racism?
Mark Pellegrino has discussed racism many times. Here are a few examples:
That’s pretty clear, right? Mark Pellegrino despises racism.
So why did someone say Mark Pellegrino is racist?
Somebody quoted one of Mark’s Tweets out of context, making it look like he’d said the exact opposite of what he actually said.
just because I think that Islam has largely rejected western concepts of rights and good. Does not mean I think ALL Muslims are violent. I despise that I have to keep saying that because it’s so infantile. But it does NOT change the FACTS that the rejection of those ideals has REAL LIFE CONSEQUENCES. Part of which is an epidemic of violence against dissenters. THAT is an undeniable FACT. It wasn’t INDIVIDUALS who became violent over the Danish cartoons. It was a POPULATION . Fatwas are issued against western writers by religious LEADERS encouraging murder. And yes I have friends from Egypt. Lebanon. Iran. Israel. My friends are atheist. Christian. Jewish AND Muslim. So what? To deny that there is an epidemic of violence in the Muslim world, and that that violence is animated by acceptance of some ideas and the rejection of others, is to be completely out of touch with reality. I am against VIOLENT IDEOLOGIES THAT ARE ANTI HUMAN RIGHTS. that goes for secular and religious.
— @MarkRPellegrino September 14, 2014
You can see the Tweets here: Mark Pellegrino on Islam
You may also want to read Mark Pellegrino’s support of George Floyd.
My friend shared a tweet that said he was racist — how was I to know?
You can’t possibly know if you haven’t looked at the evidence yourself. So, please, check the facts before you share something like that. It’s a horrible thing to say about somebody — particularly when it’s untrue. Rumours like that can do a lot of damage to an individual, possibly affecting their wellbeing or their livelihood. Don’t be the one spreading false rumours or fake news about anyone.
What should I do?
If you see a Tweet like that again, do a quick search on Google or Twitter and find out what was really said.
If the Tweet you read is wrong or misleading — let the person who shared it know. But don’t be a dick about it! Assume good intent: they probably shared it in good faith but didn’t check the facts. Be kind, share a link to the evidence, and encourage them to let others know they were mistaken.
Why does this page exist?
This page exists to help people who type ‘Is Mark Pellegrino racist?’ or ‘Is Mark Pellegrino Islamophobic?’ into a search engine find the truth: Mark Pellegrino is not racist; Mark Pellegrino is not Islamophobic.
If you haven’t already, have a listen to the podcast where Mark addresses the accusations: https://theshafferhour.podbean.com/e/mark-pellegrino/
