MP writes to Will Smith with warning on ‘one-punch assaults’

A Conservative MP has written to Will Smith warning him of the dangers of one-punch assaults, after he struck Chris Rock at last night’s Oscars ceremony for a joke about his wife.

Dehenna Davison, who lost her father to a single blow to the head when she was 13, told of her disappointment at Smith using his platform “for the promotion of violence”, despite finding Rock’s joke “in the poorest of taste”.

Smith took to the stage and struck Rock in the face after the comedian made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith’s buzz cut – a style she has adopted after admitting to suffering from alopecia.

In her letter, Davison wrote of how her life was “turned upside down” after her father’s death; and how it led to her getting involved in politics.

Last year the MP for Bishop Auckland set up the All Party Parliamentary Group on One Punch Assaults, and she extended an invite to Smith to speak to the group.

She wrote: “We cannot change our past actions, but we can shape our futures, and we can choose to use our platforms for good.” 

Davison opened her letter by admitting to be a “huge fan” of Smith’s work “since I was a kid watching The Fresh Prince, and have been moved to tears by your performances in movies like The Pursuit of Happyness (sic) and Seven Pounds.”

Explaining her reasons for writing, she said: “When I was thirteen, my father was killed by a single blow to the head. My life was turned upside down, and it was this that led to me getting involved in politics.

“I wanted to do all I could to help ensure other children wouldn’t have to experience losing a parent, missing school to sit through court, or attending years of therapy, as I did.”