The following comments have been heard and/or read:
"This is NOT how it is in corporate America." -a 21 year old retail employee/student.
"How dare he (Dre, the show's main character and father of the Johnson family) ridicule African culture like that by dressing in that garb and beating those drums?!"-a guy who cut the show off before it ended.
"This is NOT my black experience so it must be wrong!"-a 45 year old native of Maryland who's never been to California.
"Blackish will NEVER be The Cosby Show or A Different World! Now those shows showed what it was like to be black!!!" -a 28 year old who clearly knows exactly how black shows should be written and produced.
*HUGE SIGH*
First and foremost, I must make this abundantly clear: YOUR BLACK EXPERIENCE ISN'T ANOTHER'S BLACK EXPERIENCE!!!! You cannot negate someone's story because it doesn't match yours!
We live in different demographics. We experience different things. What is it to work in corporate America in Atlanta isn't the same as New York City. There are some similarities but it isn't the same! But it shouldn't make the experience any less respected.
We all have ideas of what it means to be black. Some believe that it is merely a skin color. Others believe it is doing all things African, which can be quite difficult seeing as how Africa is our 2nd largest continent and has 54 independent countries...and not to mention, being African isn't synomous with BLACKNESS. African is African. That's it.
Then there are the critics who've compared the pilot episode of Blackish to the years of episodes of The Cosby Show and A Different World. We hold those shows on an untouchable pedestal because simply put, they were great shows. Bill Cosby was able to depict Blacks in a positive light.
However, we fail to forget that not everyone had those experiences. I didn't grow in Brooklyn nor were my parents doctors or lawyers. I didn't attend an HBCU nor were my friends only black. Does that mean that I should've written off those shows? Of course not. I was still able to identify with their stories and keep in mind that the shows were fictional comedies. And how can a lot of us forget that we were too young to experience the lacklusterness of A Different World's first season before Debbie Allen came to revamp the show?! I skip that season anyway! But imagine what would've happened if they'd given up on the show? We wouldn't have it to rewatch today!
We have a serious problem with expecting one comedy to tell of every experience. That is not reality. The things that we go through are as vast as our shades.
You cannot expect a tv show to tell our history either. That is your job, especially if you have kids or are planning to. A celebrity's job isn't to educate, it is to entertain. I know that a lot of black celebrities were our role models who preached the pro-black message back in the day. We are no longer back in the day. We are living in 2014 and we must move forward. Be your own damn role model!!
And what does blackish even mean? Is it the notion of being black without the attitudes of exclusivity/hostility as to welcome other races to borrow our culture? Or it is being identified as black by other blacks but with limitations? Perhaps it's what society wants us to be as to not scare the white people, filtered, always smiling, never reminiscent about those bad monumental historical events that happened not so long ago? Ding ding, I'll take all three answers Alex!!
Am I blackish because I don't like watermelon but love fried chicken? Last time I heard, watermelon and fried chicken are popular...with millions of people of many races.
Am I blackish because I attended a PWI but still joined the Black organizations? I thought the goal was getting an education...
Am I blackish because my hair is natural but my name is Christa, a "white sounding name"??
Am I blackish because I grew up in the suburbs, didn't wear the black designer labels but still used "urban vernacular"???
Nope. You're just ignorant. You all make your lists of black standards and as soon as someone does it another way, it's wrong. That's not how it works. That's not how any of this works haha!
Once more, I reiterate: I'm black. I'm unapologetically black. I'll always be black and within my black culture are many variables. And I've found that those who are ignorant to the multitudinous ways that blacks live and encounter life haven't traveled much, worked, lived, or went to school in diverse environments, leaving them to spew biased opinions.
As in Blackish, I've been one of the token blacks at the office who's approached with the "Hayyy girllll" complete with neck swervings and hands on the hip movements. I've been the stranger who was asked to be taught how to twerk. I've been the student who was looked upon to represent all da black people in a class discussion about race. And I've been the friend who was looked down upon because I refused to see another Tyler Perry movie with the same plot but a different title! Lawdhafmercy!
We fight over silly things. If you don't like Blackish, or any other show that stars a black person, don't watch it. That would include Love and Hip Hop, or any other Black reality show that you love so much. Hmm, about that...
My message to you all is to be open to change. We miss a lot of goodness of what today and the future may hold when we're so adamant about clinging to the past. You want an accurate answer of how things have changed? Talk to your elders. Our parents have gone through unspeakable things in order for us to have the chance at a better life. And a better life doesn't mean forgetting who you are as a black person. It means more resources and opportunities to get an education, travel, live in new places, meet new people, have careers and families, and try new hobbies. Live and be the best black person that you can be and as always: Remember your history (not what was taught in grade school). Live in the present. Strive for greater in the future.
Peace!
No comments:
Post a Comment