The California state assembly rejected a proposal to honor John Wayne Thursday because of the actor’s offensive comments. Republican assemblyman Matthew Harper proposed naming May 26, 2016 as John Wayne Day (that’s his birthday) to honor the actor famous for Westerns and movies like True Grit. But other members of the California state assembly rejected his proposal in a 35-20 vote, citing comments the deceased actor had made about race, according to the Washington Post. Democratic assembly member Luis Alejo pointed to a 1971 Playboy interview in which Wayne made disparaging comments about black people: “We can’t all of a sudden get down on our knees and turn everything over to the leadership of the blacks.