Tavis Smiley Booted From MLK Event, Loses $37k

Obama supporters protest Smiley being keynote speaker

Tavis Smiley's criticisms of President Barack Obama just cost him $37,000.

Smiley was slated to be the keynote speaker at a Martin Luther King luncheon hosted by the Peoria Civic Center in central Illinois next week. However a group of Obama supporters threatened to boycott the luncheon if Smiley was allowed to participate. 

"What’s important to us is putting together a luncheon that celebrates the life and work of Dr.King,” said luncheon organizer Alma Brown. “And it became evident over the last few days that people were upset about comments that Tavis Smiley had made, comments that we weren’t aware of unfortunately so we made the decision to cancel his contract.”

Smiley is being replaced by radio show host and Georgetown professor Michael Eric Dyson.

Obviously hurt by the move, and the money lost, Smiley called the decision "wrong."

“Something is wrong with this country," he said on Fox News. "That so often the political right, and I am no defender of the political right gets accused of playing the game of political correctness. What this underscores is that those on the left, the Democrats can play that game of political correctness as well.”