News•June 5, 2020 9:16 AM ET•39,931 views

The Ghost Inside bassist under fire for past racial slur

To coincide with the release of their new album amid the nation's ongoing racial unrest, yesterday The Ghost Inside issued a new 'What Do You Stand For?' t-shirt, with 100% of the profits destined for the NAACP. Not long thereafter, Rashod Jackson, drummer of Virginia hardcore band Bracewar, took to Twitter to lambaste the The Ghost Inside for seemingly overlooking a previous racial slur allegedly used by "bitch ass bass player" Jim Riley:

This is cute. @theghostinside y'all gonna act like your bitch ass bass player didn't call y'alls bus driver a nigger that time? I ain't forget that shit. https://t.co/vTJuawPbyW
— Shod Exotic (@RashodJackson) June 5, 2020

Terror guitarist Martin Stewart subsequently chimed in, further validating Jackson's allegation (you may recall some previous animus between Terror and The Ghost Inside):

remember when little whitey open hand slapped his tall punk ass in the face for it?! HAHAHA https://t.co/YA6bMNKmS7
— Martín (@ForeverLawless) June 5, 2020

In the intervening hours, Jackson has pointedly called upon Riley to publicly address the matter:

What's good Jim! The people wanna know. Don't be a fucking coward speak up. Tell them you said what you said. https://t.co/bL6KnabduH
— Shod Exotic (@RashodJackson) June 5, 2020

We'll give @theghostinside & @SpartaDTD a few more hours to address it. He knows what he said. Why would I, a black man with everything going on right now make a joke about this. If you think this is a joke then you're part of the problem. https://t.co/lT7e8UWx6I
— Shod Exotic (@RashodJackson) June 5, 2020

Thus far, neither Riley nor The Ghost Inside have responded. UPDATE #1: In response to those calling the timing of his accusation suspicous, Jackson posted a screenshot of a tweet to Riley from early 2015:

To everyone asking "why is this just not coming out" well here you go https://t.co/JhFjITBdzJ
— Shod Exotic (@RashodJackson) June 5, 2020

UPDATE #2: The Ghost Inside bassist Jim Riley has now issued the following statement:

"Rashod called me out in 2015. I called him, he put the screws to me. I deserved it, and I apologized to him. He told me that wasn't good enough and he was right. It's shameful and fucking embarrassing. I present myself as someone who gives a shit about progressive movements and ideas, and I was not living up to that. "Because of that conversation I had to take a big fucking look in the mirror and recognize a lot of bullshit that I was selling myself. I made too many excuses for being brought up without exposure to the black experience, and I should have been better. I make a conscious effort to purge stuff about myself that still sucks when I find it, and to be mindful that I'm just a passenger on someone else's ship in any movement related to black lives. "I'm sorry. I know that's not enough. I'm going to keep doing the work. That might still not be enough. I'm going to do it anyway."

Rashod called me out in 2015. I called him, he put the screws to me. I deserved it, and I apologized to him. He told me that wasn't good enough and he was right.
— The Jim Riley (@SpartaDTD) June 5, 2020

UPDATE #3: Jackson himself has come under fire the past two days for his own past. He issued this statement today in response: