STREAM EXCLUSIVE ORIGINALS

Rosie O’Donnell ‘Couldn’t Believe’ Whoopi Goldberg Said America Wasn't A Racist Country

The comedienne opened up about one of their biggest arguments on ‘The View.’

Daytime panel talk show, The View, is no stranger to hot topics and heated panel debates. Former host Rosie O’Donnell is opening up about her on-camera feud with fellow host, Whoopi Goldberg, once she returned to the show for a second time from 2014 to 2015.

During a visit to SiriusXM Urban View’s The Clay Cane Show, O’Donnell talked about one of her intense clashes with Goldberg, where the two, alongside Laverne Cox, Rosie Perez and Repulician pundit Nicole Wallace, debated America is a racist country. Goldberg said the nation was not racist, shocking O’Donnell and Cox.

“Whoopi saying there was no racism in America to me and I was like how do I argue this with her on television? I couldn’t believe it that came out of her mouth. I was kind of shocked on a daily basis and it seemed as though whatever i said she wanted to say the opposite, it didn’t matter what it was, even something as basic as, ‘Yes, [this is a racist country.]’ A black woman in America. Older than me, how’s that possible? I didn’t understand it.”

The “Sleepless in Seattle” actress also addressed how she did not want to fight with Goldberg, seeing her as one of her allies. 

“I also didn’t want to fight with a legend, one of the few Black women who ascend to a level very few Black women ever get -- Oprah, Whoopi, you kidding me? I’m not going to battle with my allies, they’re my allies! I couldn’t figure out how to make myself heard without getting into it everyday with her and no matter what, I don’t want to get paid to argue with my idols.”

O’Donnell also added, “I tried to fix it with her, I tried to talk to her. She really didn’t like me, which was something very surprising and hurtful. I wasn’t expecting that… it was an election year, we were going to do good things for the country, it just didn’t end up the way that I had dreamed it. So I left.” Listen to the SiriusXM clip below:

Also, if you missed the exchange O’Donnell had with Goldberg back in 2015, check it out here:

Even though O’Donnell quit the show, she’s since been focusing on promoting social justice issues. The 57-year-old will host a nationwide vigil called Lights for Liberty on July 12 to help bring awareness to migrant children being held in cages in detention camps.

Latest News

Subscribe for BET Updates

Provide your email address to receive our newsletter.


By clicking Subscribe, you confirm that you have read and agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge our Privacy Policy. You also agree to receive marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers) and other information from BET and the Paramount family of companies. You understand that you can unsubscribe at any time.