Ellen DeGeneres is facing a backlash for her joke about how being in quarantine during the coronavirus is “like being in jail.”
“This is like being in jail, is what it is,” DeGeneres shared Monday from the living room of her home during the first return to her show, “The Ellen DeGeneres” show, after production was halted due in March due to the coronavirus. (RELATED: REPORT: Coachella Potentially Rescheduled To October Due To Coronavirus Fears)
“It’s mostly because I’ve been wearing the same clothes for ten days and everyone in here is gay,” she added. “The jokes that I have.” (RELATED: Here’s A List Of How Every Country In The World Is Responding To Coronavirus)
WATCH:
I’m thinking of you and sending love to you all. There’s no better way for me to do that than from my show. pic.twitter.com/HsKvTorsLm
— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) April 6, 2020
The joke apparently didn’t sit well with everyone and the talk show host got called out on social media for joking about the situation when there are surging cases of COVID-19 at jails across the country, per InStyle magazine in a piece published Tuesday.
“What a great look for Ellen as thousands of people sit in actual jail cells just hoping for the best without soap and basic protections,” one person tweeted.
What a great look for Ellen as thousands of people sit in actual jail cells just hoping for the best without soap and basic protections https://t.co/RBytt0Kl4B
— Caroline Darya Framke (@carolineframke) April 7, 2020
You have any fucking idea how many human beings are locked in cells, sick, dying, terrified they’ll be next, because they couldn’t come up with a thousand dollars for bail, because they missed a court date, because they’re addicts, because we lock people in cells @TheEllenShow
— Lauren Hough (@laurenthehough) April 7, 2020
“One of the most concentrated coronavirus outbreaks in the world is happening in NYC’s biggest jail complex…The jail’s top doctor called the situation a “public health disaster” ….One inmate said: “A lot of us are going to be going home in body bags.” https://t.co/m1adElxfJP https://t.co/DIC6U4AwY8
— Christopher Mathias (@letsgomathias) April 7, 2020
With another person simply sharing photos of Ellen’s large home/grounds while questioning just how much of a jail it represented.
“Jail” https://t.co/XThdaX9IBx pic.twitter.com/hvJ0tqQYVU
— Nikola (@niktaylorde) April 7, 2020
A rep for the talk show host did not respond immediately for comment to the outlet and there has been no comment yet from DeGeneres on her social media accounts any of the criticism.