We Ignore These ’Small Insults’ to Our Peril

I had to bump this up from the comments section on the last thread  that turned into a never ending movie review of Tyler Perry.  As if the only thing at stake is whether you got your $10 worth at the local cinema. This was the whole point of the post... heck of this blog.

Surely you’ve seen the propaganda films the Nazis used against people in Germany. Even criminals employ a similar technique: Their victims are never people, they’re marks, johns, pigeons, stupes. Anything but human. These names like goonette, imagery like Madea, Rasputia and the like tell the world that black women aren’t human. That we’re available as prey. They rob us of our humanity and thus place us in greater danger.

For want of a nail a shoe was lost…We ignore these ’small insults’ to our peril. We allow those who would rob us of our humanity and thus our lives to flourish and we are complicit in our own destruction. This is always as it has been with black women. Roslyn Holcomb

People don't want to acknowledge what is happening either because they don't want to feel vulnerable or don't want to have to act. The blog is called What About Our Daughters, not What About Us. It acknowledges that WE might make out okay, but what of future generations of Black women and girls? You think we can't go backwards? Ask the Black folks that lived through reconstruction. Ask the French, the Poles, the women and girls of The Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, or Bosnia.  Heck ask the 80 year old woman who has lived in Dunbar Village her entire life! She survived the tyranny of Jim Crow, the Klan and the Black Codes only to die under the tyranny violent criminals with Black faces.

You either get IT or you don't. If you don't get that "art" and "entertainment" have always been the tool used to dehumanize people then you just aren't a student of history or you are in denial because you don't want to acknowledge that this is happening to you and therefore require you to respond. If you don't quite grasp why you would not want to be in a group that is systematically dehumanized then there really isn't much I can do other than refer you to the 8 Stages of Genocide.

If you think that could never happen in the United States of America in the year 2009, I bet you never thought you'd see tens of thousands starving on the streets of a major US city for days. I bet you never think you'd see two skyscrapers with human beings inside plummet to the ground. I bet you never thought you'd see the day when people would park for hours at a gas station because they kept running out of gas.

But thinking about those things makes most uncomfortable so they want to engage in wholesale DENIAL just like  people  who are so familiar with the plantation that they won't leave even when the war is over. They won't run away even as Harriet Tubman is holding up a MapQuest printout to freedom.

Likewise, for me it is too early to get on any "Ark" or other conveyance to "safety" because too many people don't know that there is a way out. Y'all go on ahead to freedom, there are too many people that haven't seen the MapQuest printout to freedom and I feel an obligation to make an attempt to make them aware. It is theirs to accept or refuse.

And by those who are not aware, I don't include grown folks with degrees, jobs and computer access who know better.

Comments

[Seattle Slim]

This is why people cannot talk about their differences because when someone refuses to see all sides of the rubix cube, they say you don't get it. I highly recommend "Why We Hate Us" by Dick Meyer. He talks about people's "truthiness" leading them to discredit others.

Everyone of you have a point and they are good points, but they are not the only ones. Life is not a line...it's a series of points and angles that are akin to geometry. It's not as simples as just getting rid of TP.

[gem2001]

You should take your own advice. You are intentionally atempting to make the issue Tyler Perry to try to marginalize legitimate concerns about PATTERNS of behavior.

Spare me. You and "your lot" intentionally try to takes us off on expeditions about "art" when any true student of history knows that art, in particular comedy, are some of the most power forms of political speech.

Sine we're appaerntly in the busiess of offering up assigned reading to thoe who disagree with us, I highly recommend you read the Wikipedia page on Joseph Goebbels and then ask yourself why you are so invested in defending the sytematic portrayal of professional Black women as balls-busting, angry, criminal, selfish and violent.

[Eva]

As I said on the other thread, the issue isn't Tyler Perry. I wouldn't have a problem with him if there were some balance in portrayals of black people in the movies or on TV but there is no balance and that's what the problem is.

If professional black women are shown as angry, selfish, ball-busters what does that say to young black people? It might make young girls think, "gee, I don't want to be like that, forty and still single, I better find me a man QUICK before I'm alone forever." And that's the problem because when they come from that fear place, they'll choose any man and sometimes that's not a good thing.

Women in TP's movies aren't seen as complete people without a man. But here's why that doesn't make sense: If a woman isn't complete without a man, then why would a man want her, who wants to marry an incomplete person?

[Seattle Slim]

Where did I say I am okay with negative portrayals of black women in the media? In fact, I did point out that it's bigger than those portrayals. If you do know history as I am sure you do, you will see that using negative imagery is standard operating procedure when trying to keep people down. I am saying that we need to raise and cultivate new voices to counter that.

Take Nazi Germany as you use, how many movies were made to counter that propaganda? How many people stood up and said, not only is this not okay but we are going to create real and positive imagery to fight this?

That's the issue at hand. I don't recall anywhere where I said his films were art. No one has answered this question yet. Get rid of the imagery and then what? How many of you are willing to go to where "goonette" lives to help her?

Get rid of Plies and she will still be in a strip club being a side show, devaluing herself for money and hurting her kids. With or without cameras. It's okay as long as it's in private though, right?

[Naima]

Get rid of Plies and she will still be in a strip club being a side show, devaluing herself for money and hurting her kids. With or without cameras. It’s okay as long as it’s in private though, right?

To me, maybe not everyone else I say YES. Adult entertainment has been aroud since the beginning of time. But in recent years it has become a part of our mainstream culture and yes that a problem. Video girl and stripper have become actual career choices for some women and not something of a last resort or something to support a drug habit.
I noticed this adult entertainment infiltrating black general entertainment with the rise of people like Lil Kim and 2 Live Crew and Luke.
They didn't even play Luke videos on TV or his songs on the radio. You didn't hear his stuff unless you were at a club. 10 years later, all rap videos look like his videos. And now a female rapper can't even get put on unless she has some hyper sexual image. These niche markets became a part of our mainstream.

[Zoopath]

It's all about balance. The imagery is so lopsided toward buffoonery. While each individual piece of degrading imagery may be based on someone's reality, the aggregate mass of all this misogynistic media is not an accurate portrait of black women as a whole. That's why it's wrong and must be critiqued and resisted. We have to stop the perception that BW that don't fit the Rasputia model are unicorns, so rare as not to be acknowledged.
I'm in the divestment corner, myself. I'll donate to Harlem children's zone and try to help my family members that fit the TP stereotype (which is sooo futile sometimes) but that's about it. I'm also a 20% tipper to give people a living wage. However, I'm not Jesus, if you seek a self-sacrificing messiah please do look elsewhere.

[JJ]

You know because people don't agree doesn't mean people don't "get it."

Religion is often used to control the masses and get people to commit all manner of atrocities in the name of the Lord...more so than entertainment ever could.

I don't hear for the abolishment of the church.

To use Germany as an example Hitler let it be known that the Germans were the "chosen" people and essentially Jews were the "devil" and then used various cartoons, movies, etc. to back that up.

Tyler alone isn't the issue...there have been plenty of other work out that didn't portray Black women as such, but for whatever reason didn't/hasn't caught on.

What no one is talking about it that the idea of a highly educated, successful woman is threatening to many a male and that many of these films reflect already held beliefs in the larger community in general and black community in particular. Hence the success of such a portrayal.

Hitler was successful because he took already held beliefs about the Jews and amplified them during a time when the masses were broke, hungry and hopeless. We're not their (yet) so Tyler is more of a pain in the ass than a "threat."

Also what no one is talking about is that his work is based on a very strict view of Christianity that preaches women have a "place" and that it's second to a man...and that women who fall out of that place would naturally be demonized...unless/until she found her man and her place in the "natural" order of things.

Once again you can make all of the work you want...but if no one is buying/listening to/viewing it what are you going to do?

You have to change the attitudes that allow this type of "art" to flourish first...then you can make profitable entertainment to combat it.

[gem2001]

I am by no means calling on anyone to be a sarificial lamb. Flight is a legitimate instinct as fight.

[Roslyn Holcomb]

"I don’t hear for the abolishment of the church."

Clearly you haven't been reading my posts. I've advocated for black women to get the hell away from churches for more than a decade now. Organized religion has been used in the black community as a type of crack for the female psyche. It's used to keep us in our "place" that is, with a man's boot firmly on our neck, while our pearls are routinely cast before swine. I all but chewed off a limb to escape religion almost 30 years ago. I recommend it highly.

[Enlightened]

I totally agree with Naima.

I remember the other day I was wondering when "bitch" became okay to say on regular television programming (ironically enough, BET blocks that word out).

I can't even count how many young ladies I know who are now "models", but they aren't walking down runways in Paris and Milan. They're "urban glam" models (serious eye roll) aspiring to be like the women who pose for the now defunct KING magazine, except they're not even on the pages of an actual magazine. They're taking pictures with supposed "photographers" and then posting them on their social networking pages for free! What in the world sense does that make?

My point in saying this is that this didn't come out of nowhere. There are a lot of different reasons why this foolishness has become acceptable, but I believe that ignoring the small insults certainly played a part.

[JJ]

@Roslyn

Alright..I stand corrected. And you don't have to convince me...my mother regularly accuses me of being an Atheist which I'm not, but last I checked God gave me a brain so that I could use it...and the modern church is anything but Holy.

And any conversation of Tyler and his work that doesn't acknowledge many of his themes come from long held religious beliefs in the black community (hence the popularity) is pointless at best and intentionally dishonest at worst

[The Angry Independent]

JJ:

"[Hitler was successful because he took already held beliefs about the Jews and amplified them during a time when the masses were broke, hungry and hopeless. We’re not their (yet) so Tyler is more of a pain in the ass than a “threat.”]"

And Perry isn't amplifying stereotypes about Blacks??? You actually hit the nail on the head with the Hitler statement. I disagree that we aren't there yet. We've been there.

Like Gina stated... it's like sand being slowly...incrementally removed from underneath your house. There's no immediate sense of urgency in so-called "Black America". Folks are stepping in the name of Love...marching straight to Hell...because the beat is so nice to dance to. Blacks tend to wait until the foundation cracks or the floor falls from under them before they act....if they act at all. Look at Hurricane Katrina....and folks not paying attention to the warnings... they were too busy dancing to the music....to do what they had to do beforehand. Now that didn't happen in all cases....but it was the case far too often. Point is... Black folks wait until there's a crisis before acting.... and you can't tell me that "Black America" isn't in crisis. W.E.B. Dubois was talking about the crisis 100 years ago... and we're still in one today...although it's a crisis of a different kind. It's almost as if Blacks have become "The Man"....in a certain sense. If not directly taking that role, other Blacks certainly are providing an assist to those other groups who want a reason to hate us....by helping to feed certain stereotypes.

[Roslyn Holcomb]

Policing our image is crucial. It's much like policing a neighborhood or a community. When no one takes care of the small things, garbage pickup, maintaining lawns, broken windows it indicates that no one is in charge. Nature hates a vacuum and when no one is in charge all manner of chaos is the result. The little crimes always leads to an environment in which larger crimes can flourish. Someone has to be Gandalf.

For too long in the black community no one was willing to be inconvenienced enough to say, "You shall not pass."Black liberal guilt led the so-called intelligentsia to be complicit in demoralization and dehumanization. If you told the truth then you weren't 'down,' and your 'ghetto pass' was revoked. My question is, who the hell wants a ghetto pass? We had no one standing in the breach and consequently the black community ceased to exist. To, my mind anyway it is past and beyond resurrection.

[Seattle Slim]

"What no one is talking about it that the idea of a highly educated, successful woman is threatening to many a male and that many of these films reflect already held beliefs in the larger community in general and black community in particular. Hence the success of such a portrayal."

Indeed. I haven't watched enough of his movies to see the pattern, but I wouldn't doubt from the few I have seen that this is the case.

Again, he may be irritating life and going for what's easy. What was not included from the EW article was a quote mentioning how BW who are college educated, single, hipster (I am not sure if this is the word he used, but it's close), are not going to agree with his portrayals as opposed to BW who are devoted to the church, SAHMs, etc. because there's a class difference.

When I first heard about the guy, I heard that you could not say a word bad about him because the church crowd would get you. Kind of like how Repubs are fiercely protective of Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity.

He may be catering to his audience. I honestly believe that Rush, Ann and Sean are a bunch of liars, but they get paid to say certain things so they do it. They cannot possibly believe half the crap they say, but money talks. He's catering to an audience within our community. If we get that audience up to speed, he would have to give up or step his game up. That's what I've been trying to say.

Why haven't any of you been affected by his movies? I know I can watch a marathon of his films (not that I would want to lol) and not start talking or acting like Madea, because I know better. Same as any of you. We need to figure out why our communities seem to be okay with this image of BP and BW specifically.

[Seattle Slim]

*imitating*

[Roslyn Holcomb]

There's a class difference between women who are single and educated as opposed to married stay at home moms? That's news to me. Having been both I call bullshit on that. Perry has benefitted from the fact that the nonexistent black community is loath to criticize anything with melanin and a penis. Especially if that anything is famous and makes lots of money.

Perry benefits from the fact that his products support white supremacy, it's a lot easier to get greenlighted for things that degrade black people within a white supremacist patriarchal framework. My most recent book is about a girl who ran away from foster care and became a stripper. She, of course, had all the markers for that particular profession and realized it. After years of therapy and hard work she found love and a career as a microbiologist. If I'd written that same book only with a stripper and a drug dealing boyfriend involved in warfare to take over other strip clubs I would've had a five book deal. (Of course, my husband wants to know why I didn't write that book! -lol-) I didn't write that book because I spent years trying to save the women I worked with from the pernicious grasp of the sex trade. I spent years trying to provide therapy and counseling to sexual abuse victims so they wouldn't gravitate to such a demoralizing field.

I produce art, and I think it's crucial that those of us who do so are always aware and conscious of the impact our art can have. That doesn't mean that we can only produce 'uplifting' characters. There are plenty in my books who are less than upstanding citizens. But we have to always be conscious of creating products that appeal only to the prurient interests.

Now there are those who might say that my books are nothing more than 'romances' and erotic romances at that. And they would be right. I don't pretend to create literature or high art, but I do believe that even low-brow art has a role and it can be detrimental if we're not forever conscious of the impact we can have. I hope that women who read my book come away with the message that they can be the instrument of their own liberation and empowerment. I think that's a powerful message, no matter where we get it.

[Seattle Slim]

I haven't ever been a SAHM (except maternity leaves) so I really couldn't say for sure, but I thought it was interesting that the person quoted mentioned a class difference. It may not be financial, but I do believe there is some kind of subclass to certain classes. For example, my life as a D.I.N.K was hugely different than it was after I had children. Financially, personally, etc. I certainly didn't see things the way my SAHM friends did or do, and I'm a mom now. I won't speak on anyone's situation, but there is a financial difference between single women, DINKs and families with a SAHP. Obviously, each group is going to have a certain amount of expendable income which means they can patronize certain things that others can't. So the person quoted may have a point.

[Eva]

@Roslyn I'd like to read that book.

But here's the sad part Roslyn. If you'd written that about a white woman, it would have been a movie on Lifetime.

[Seattle Slim]

Roslyn,

True he profits from WS, but that ain't it alone. Remember, he got on their radar after he started amassing large af-am audiences at his plays and viewership of his DVDs.

If the Af-Am church collective would've completely ignored the guy, would he be where he is today? Maybe, maybe not. Maybe ignoring him could've forced him to do something else, something more productive with his films.

[Seattle Slim]

My question is: how much responsibility does his previous af-am exclusive audience bare? And if they are to be held responsible for letting this happen (kind of like most Germans did at the very beginning of Hitler's Final Solution), what could've justified their choice to patronize this man and his work?

[Roslyn Holcomb]

Eva, I hate to promote on Gina's blog, but if you email me I'll be more than happy to provide a link to my book.

@Seattle Slim, to my mind class and income are two different things. People can have plenty of money, but by their behavior they lack class. (That's why you have multi-millionaires running around with dog-fighting thugs.) I was raised working class, but we had middle class values.

[cinco]

The points made about his movies being chruched based is right on point. I'm sick of the "black community" wanting it both ways. You can't support media like TP presents and then cry that the President is not doing enough for "Blacks". Give me a break. Save your own self...and then try to help someone else out afterwards.

I don't support any media that keeps people bound, especially women, Black women. I do what I can. Boycott what I can and use the services of others that think like I do for the most part.

[Seattle Slim]

Roslyn,

No I agree with your distinction. What I think he meant by class difference is was not "class" in the behavioral sense but the categorical sense. Like my SAHM friend would've been considered lower middle class because of their income and as a DINK we would've been considered upper middle class.

[Hollywood Blackout]

Man, I took a day off from the internet and I miss a great conversation. As someone who works in entertainment I can say that Tyler Perry is Hollywood's dream realized.

He has single handedly been able to tap into a market that no one - black, white, other - dared to even consider. Most black filmmakers of the past thirty years have had no desire to cater to religious black folks. And as that group has grown larger and much more female, the industry cared even less about them. Tyler has given them a way to make money off people they generally despise - black, female, church-going, conservative, "simple", etc.

So while we are discussing the black "community" we can't ignore how racism plays a hand in the type of black entertainment that reaches the mainstream. Most non-black (and too many black) people love nothing more than seeing stereotypical blacks whether it be in film, on tv or in music. I am not at all trying to turn this into a discussion of white people or racism because we have been there before and honestly it's not really the point.

But I just wanted to add that the only black tv shows, films and music that are successful are the ones that play heavily on stereotypes. "Martin", "Good Times", Booty Call, Beyonce, Lil Wayne, all types of black comedy, etc. The common thread is that the main character or star prescribes to "set rules" about black behavior, mannerisms, dress, etc.

Any broad portrayal of black culture is typically ignored by ALL folks.

I think the question we need to be asking is how do we get younger people (because screw some of these older folks, they are just too damaged) to see that it is imperative that they work to change not only their own perceptions of what it means to be black but that they feel empowered enough to step out of these tiny boxes most black people place themselves in.

I agree that people need to stop supporting Tyler Perry. He is nothing more than a modern day slave catcher. He is so blinded by GREED (not art because he admittedly is not an artist) and POWER and JEALOUS of blacks who have achieved success via education and good, high paying jobs. MOST black people are the exact same way - they just haven't figured out how to try and humiliate educated blacks on a grand scale like Tyler.

Other exploiters include people like Michael Baisden (just trying to fill his harem with desperate black female groupies), Steve Harvey (same), Russell Simmons (the black face hired to make racism palatable) - all of these men made their money off pitting educated blacks vs. non educated blacks.

[gem2001]

@roslyn Promote away!

[Seattle Slim]

Hollywood,

Good post. I was hoping someone would've answered my questions, but I absolutely agree with you wholeheartedly about changing perceptions and teaching them to get out the box. I think you said it better than I did.

With that said, if BP like to see movies about stereotypes of themselves, I would like to know why that is? Could it be they don't think of it as a stereotype, but see it as a reflection of themselves? If so, how would one give them a better mirror to see themselves in? One that's more accurate...

I checked out Redneckmatch or something like that as a joke with my brother and boyfriend to see if the site was for real. It was. What was even more amazing, not only did most fall into the stereotypes of rednecks, they admitted to liking the things that the stereotypes would like. A good chunk LOVED CMT. I was surprised and not at the same time. It was an interesting study in humans.

Those people embraced the stereotypes because they feel it is an accurate portrayal of themselves, life and the world. I wonder if they had the ability to see things differently if they would change their minds.

[Naima]

For those in the NYC area there is an African Film Festival going on this week. Just Google it.

[cleopatrajones]

I am about to drop the proverbial elephant in the room so flame me if you must.

Tyler Perry is nothing more than a self-hating homosexual who on one hand has made a fortune catering to the whole "church crowd" and the black church in particular knowing all the while that everything he is (in terms of his sexuality) is everything they hate. I don't know how he sleeps at night knowing that the sweet (but seriously deluded)church ladies who organize in mass to see his movies on their opening day would turn on him in droves if the truth about his sexuality came out. He is the worst kind of hypocrite.

No I do not know for sure if Tyler is gay but let's just say I am highly suspicious. And there is nothing wrong with being gay nor is it anybody's business if one is, but I just find it incredulous that he has made millions of dollars catering to the black church community some of whose more well known members and spokespeople are known for their pathological hatred of homosexuals.

[BLKSeaGoat]

Cleopatra,

I don't think you dropped an elephant in the room, but you do raise an interesting point. I actually wrote a post about this a while back on my Facebook page.

Conservative Black Churches organized in mass droves to take their flocks to a glorified drag show. These are the same people who believe that homosexuality is an abomination and refer to legitimately transgendered persons as "its" instead of the gender identity they choose to express.

I divorced the black church during my teenage years, but ours was a perfunctory courtship at best. Had I stayed around long enough, I too, would probably be some deluded. self-hating, woman-hating, closet case with a penchant for playing dress up.

What's even sadder is that TP has a huge gay following.

Sorry for going off-topic Gina.

[Naima]

cleopatrajones,
that is what irks me about TP the most. His anti working BW mantra is obviously the product of his self hatred and BW don't even notice it.

[LaJane Galt]

Perry benefits from the fact that his products support white supremacy, it’s a lot easier to get greenlighted for things that degrade black people within a white supremacist patriarchal framework.

Yes. Don't believe for one second that white folks don't make $ of TP. He is but one producer. Who has an interest in his film company?

He is so blinded by GREED (not art because he admittedly is not an artist) and POWER and JEALOUS of blacks who have achieved success via education and good, high paying jobs. MOST black people are the exact same way - they just haven’t figured out how to try and humiliate educated blacks on a grand scale like Tyler.

Most people think his critics are "hating" on him. He clearly has some issues. Coming from such a socially stratified colorstacracy like NOLA, I'm not surprised.

He needs to work out his demons...but not at my expense.

Seattle~to put it bluntly, Black folks are so f-ed up...have so much psychological damage, that they can only see the worst in themselves. Some of us have internalized hatred and can only view ourselves through a white lens.

Roslyn--we need to cut down on the church in general.

& no cleo~ he ain't foolin' nobody!!

[Seattle Slim]

This is so funny because I was just reading about Donnie McClurkin's recent comments on Crunk and Disorderly. The jokes wrote themselves in his statements in the interview. I don't know much about him, but I am confused as all get out by the guy.

[Seattle Slim]

LaJane,

I agree. It takes a lot of effort to get rid of that internalized hatred.

[cleopatrajones]

Most people think his critics are “hating” on him. He clearly has some issues. Coming from such a socially stratified colorstacracy like NOLA, I’m not surprised.

Yes Tyler has some issues...some very serious issues and when you add the whole colorstacracy of NOLA, it all starts to make perfect sense. Know who else is from NOLA? The Knowles family and Tiger Woods father Earl....NUFF SAID...its the same mentality....its the same issues...its the same pathology. Its the same nonsense that has Beyonce running around lauding her creole ancestry like it somehow makes her superior and Tiger spouting that cablacasian bullshit that he learned directly from Earl's mouth.

What’s even sadder is that TP has a huge gay following.

What's even sadder is that too many people in the black community excuse Tyler's pathology with the lame excuse of it is somehow okay because he's black and if you call him out on it you're just a jealous hater who wants to see a sucessful black man fail. If the Madea movies were made by a white producer we would be burning up the phone lines to Al Sharpton's office and protesting in the streets.

Conservative Black Churches organized in mass droves to take their flocks to a glorified drag show. These are the same people who believe that homosexuality is an abomination and refer to legitimately transgendered persons as “its” instead of the gender identity they choose to express.

The black church for the most part is completely useless. At least what passes for the black church community in 2009. Don't get me wrong. There are plenty of black churches that do good work and aren't teaching homophobia, racism and misogyny to their parishoners. I'm not talking about them. I'm talking about the whole prosperity movement aka God Wants Me To Bling In My Bentley mega church nonsense.

& no cleo~ he ain’t foolin’ nobody!!

LaJane...me & you...eye 2 eye.

[Sandra]

Seattle Slim: there's no reason at all to be confused by Donnie McClurkin. He has told his story publicly. As a boy he was sexually abused (by older male relatives), and as a young man was homosexual. As part of the growth of his relationship with God, he disavowed homosexuality and now lives as a single man, not practising homosexuality, but not practising heterosexuality either (at least at the time he discussed his history). His views re homosexuality are those of the conservative black church that others have previously commented on.

Gina, sorry to get off topic. Thanks.

[janice]

I totally agree with your battle with BET. BET promised to be a positive place for black programming. Its transgressions were great. But I see TP in another light. His films are most certainly religious propaganda (his brand). All films are propaganda. His films are a throwback blender combination of 50’s melodrama, Jane Austin and the Marx brothers (but not as skillful). But I can say apple and you say orange. The real question in regards to negative portrayals of black women in media is what the solution is. The solution believe it or not is not stopping TP but starting someone else. I still believe that TP Studios is like any other film studio. If you look back early enough other film studios made their bread and butter selling to specific audiences. Warner Bros were the weepies (women’s pictures) Universal was horror and MGM meant musicals. But as we all know they diversified or they died out. I believe out of tp and tp studios many will come sort of like roger corman and his legacy of starting other filmmakers. Already out of Tp we have Nzingha Stewart directing For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow Is Enuf.
The real solution is making a film that makes money and to a less degree has critical success. TP has distribution because his films make money. Bad rap music flourishes (or it did) because conglomerates made money. We have everything to make a movie. There are black female directors, actors, graphic artist, and even writers right here on WAOD. Even people who have access to locations and equipment you never know until you take a survey. Together we have money to pay for things that can’t be volunteered. I remember last time the subject came up there was a writer upset that people asked her to do things for free. I’m afraid this is the only way this can happen. People will have to volunteer their skills and services. Other groups of people have learned that they must act as a true community in order to advance their cause. It is a true American tradition that if you have the will you can prove people wrong on the way to pursuit of happiness.

[deborah]

"With that said, if BP like to see movies about stereotypes of themselves, I would like to know why that is?" --seattle slim

My thoughts on this: there are a lot of us who do not want to do the work we need to do in order to take ourselves to the next level of self-direction and empowerment. So, when we watch these films with foolish people doing silly, stupid things and see a "Hollywood happy ending", the idea that somehow we will all be OK without solving our problems is re-inforced.

Everyone likes to be affirmed, even when they are in the wrong. It's the mentality that says: "if I don't have an umbrella, it's not raining."

[Seattle Slim]

@Deborah,

I feel your answer completely! That's a very good point!

I didn't know anything about the guy so thanks for that Sandra. That's interesting to me. It's almost like he's taken a vow of chastity.

@Cleopatra,

What do you mean by misogyny, racism and homophobia? I don't have a denomination, but I am Christian. I don't go to church either. With that said, if anyone can point to an example of that racism and misogyny and homophobia, I'd love to see it because I'm curious. Forewarned is forearmed.

[Khadija]

It's been fascinating to watch how one person (with some slight back-up) has been able to obfuscate the main point of these last two blog posts.

For those who have been bamboozled:

Stopping the support of Tyler Perry IS part of the solution. This is not an "either/or" situation. It's "both/and." Who said that self-respecting Black people couldn't "walk and chew gum" simultaneously? We can stop supporting Tyler Perry AND create healthy, self-respecting films.

If you listen carefully, you'll hear how DEEPLY invested folks are in continuing to support negative, harmful products such as Tyler Perry's movies. Notice how adamant they are that we should NOT talk of making an effort to cut off support for TP movies. The message of all the convoluted double talk is that "Black folks should do just about anything BUT stopping their support of TP."

This is the same mistake that Blacks collectively made regarding hip-hop. I was a teenager at the beginning of the hip-hop mess. I heard these same arguments for why we shouldn't mobilize to stop [fill in the blank rapper]. And how INSTEAD of stopping [fill in the blank rapper], we should create "positive" hip-hop.

It does NOT work like that. If you don't REMOVE the weeds, they will eventually crowd out and replace whatever flowers you plant. Unopposed negativity will take center stage and pave the way for even worse forms of negativity. This has been our experience with hip-hop. This is because unopposed aggression ALWAYS escalates and expands its range. These self-hating and BW-hating entertainment products are acts of aggression.

If Blacks had stopped some of these earlier rappers, we wouldn't be dealing with the filth that we're dealing with right now.

Peace and blessings.

[gem2001]

Thank you Khadija!

Its always the same refrain... We can't do X until Y happens or we can't do Z until A,B,C is addressed first.

To focus on X is not to ignore Y.

And yes, some people are DEEPLY invested in making sure we ignore this. I have often wondered why some people were so invested in stopping other people from acting in their own self defense. If you don't see it as a threat then sit by and paint your toe nails.

Unless Tyler Perry is paying your bills, I don't see where the passionate defense and obfuscation is coming from.

[Khadija]

Gina,

These people are passionately defending the things that they enjoy. They are not willing to risk giving up anything at all that they ENJOY. They are not willing to give up a single degrading song. They are not willing to give up a single degrading tv show. They are not willing to give up a single degrading TP movie.

For all of the faux-activist posturing, these people are NOT willing to part with a single bit of the trash that they enjoy.

If other Black folks mobilize to stop supporting TP movies, etc. then these folks might lose some of their creature comforts. They DON'T want this to happen. So, they make every effort to prevent the rest of us from taking action that might result in the loss of any of their entertainment pleasures.

This is why they obstruct any and all efforts at stopping the trash that they enjoy. Instead of dispassionately watching others engage in activities that they (claim to) feel are fruitless.

Peace and blessings.

[Jenella]

I agree with this blog, but I have to say that its not just a war on African American women its a war on all women. It won\'t change until someone realizes that. We represent the majority, yet its legal law to rape Afganistani women, Its okay to make blond jokes or have rappers like eminem rapping about having sex with Sarah Palin. No one in the mainstream media has condemmed this, so its just a matter of time that a lesser known rapper will rap about the same things about Michelle Obama. After all the media is starting to write about Michelles eye lashes. thats just disgusting. Why is Jennifer Lopez known for one of her body parts instead of her acting and singing abilities? If the media can disrespect their own than we have no chance to defend ourselves unless we all come together. I just find it weird that these companies can find a way to fire a Don Imus in 3 days, but then don\'t hear us after that. Maybe we should get into the street theater business like Al Sharpton.

[Faith]

Ok I commend you for wanting to be Harriet Tubman but she put her life on the line every time she went back to rescue people. She also had to leave a majority behind. So please be safe Gina. I had to declare my line in the sand with someone on a social media site about his coonery and if that's an example of showing people an alternative safely then that's as far as I'm willing to go. The message was clear though that I don't wish to be objectified as a woman or as a black person.

[The Angry Independent]

Slightly off topic (not really)....

Has anyone seen that new Burger King Commercial...the one that is targeting your babies???? My God!!! I felt like I was in a Twilight Zone episode, watching what happened to a decrepit civilization 50 or 100 years after I had already died. But no... I wasn't imagining anything. I've seen this thing twice now....running on one of my basic cable channels.

I know i'm not the only one who has seen this thing... It's one of the most outrageous and inappropriate commercials that i've run across.

If you haven't seen it... you will be left speechless after you finally do.

Someone needs to post the video of this "commercial".... i'll see if I can find a link for you all. I'm not even going to attempt to describe this thing... I simply cannot do it. No one would believe me. You have to see it to believe it.... ...and remember the target audience is basically babies... Black babies in particular.

Easily the worst commercial that i've seen since Gina has been dealing with this foolishness.

[The Angry Independent]

Looks like I'm not the only one wondering WTH is going on with this.

Rolling Stone.com as well as other websites have caught wind of this new commercial (for kids meals).

But hey.... maybe i'm just out of touch with the new norms.... maybe i'm imagining things or just overreacting.

But here's the link (w/vid) from Rolling Stone.

http://www.rollingstone.com/rockdaily/index.php/2009/04/08/sir-mix-a-lot-likes-burger-kings-ad-money-squarer-booty/

My blood pressure is so elevated that I can't put words together very well right now.

Can anything be done about this?????? Everything that's coming to mind right now is not very legal.... that's because i'm angry as Hell.

[iamme73]

For me this issue has 2 sides.
First one is we live in a racist and sexist society. So portrayals of black women/black people aren't taken as actors/actresses, entertainers, rappers, etc portraying fictional over the top characters.

In fact, entertainment in the form of movies(Birth of a nation), plays(white actors dressing up in black face and portraying black people in a racist manner), and in music have been a big part of transmitting America's racist ideology about black people.

So that means that black actors, writers, directors, rappers, etc have a special obligation to deal with that reality when they produce entertainment, and as such they deserve large amounts of criticism when they don't.

The second issue is that generally, I don't blame entertainers or individual black people because some racist and will take their behavior or words to justify their racist ideas, afterall black people eating watermelon or chicken was used to demean/stereotype black people in the minds of racists.
So that literally means anything that black people do could/would be used to stereotype us.

Nor does entertainment cause people to have racist ideas about black people. If that were the case, then white people would be viewed very negatively based on the amount of filth entertainment that their racial group produces and that is not the case.

So we have to recognize that a person has to believe in a racist ideology to arrive at racist conclusions, and that ultimately we have to attack that racist ideolgy, so that individual actions by individual black entertainers aren't used to define the black race in general.

Having written all that, black male actors, rappers, etc HAVE to be cognizant of the ideas that they are sending out about black women in a society that IS racist towards black people.

[Halima]

Hollywood blackout said..
I think the question we need to be asking is how do we get younger people (because screw some of these older folks, they are just too damaged) to see that it is imperative that they work to change not only their own perceptions of what it means to be black but that they feel empowered enough to step out of these tiny boxes most black people place themselves in.
I agree that people need to stop supporting Tyler Perry. He is nothing more than a modern day slave catcher. He is so blinded by GREED (not art because he admittedly is not an artist) and POWER and JEALOUS of blacks who have achieved success via education and good, high paying jobs. MOST black people are the exact same way - they just haven’t figured out how to try and humiliate educated blacks on a grand scale like Tyler.
Other exploiters include people like Michael Baisden (just trying to fill his harem with desperate black female groupies), Steve Harvey (same), Russell Simmons (the black face hired to make racism palatable) - all of these men made their money off pitting educated blacks vs. non educated blacks.

Just a quick response...

We could give free tickets to see films that are of our approval as judged against a five key point scoring system. This would stir up the mainstream to see what we deem as acceptable/good portrayals of black women.

So we are educating as well as spreading the agenda and embedding in mainstream the ideas and notion of appropraite portrayals of black women in addition to developing a taste/market for ’better’ representation.

E.g. the film panel of WOAD (or whatever it be called), gave the film ’XYZ’ 5/5 and bought a thousand tickets (which anyone can access) in cinemas across the country. This also generates media attention and film critics will begin to be aware of the elements of adequately representing black women, which they might buy into or at least begin to take into consideration in their own critique of films.

Of course the details and strategy of how this would all work needs to be fleshed out.

The principle is the same for helping the struggling black female writer/producer/director. its about first coalescing a market for their films (hopefully a sustainable number already exist), the next step is creating more by getting others to develope a 'taste'. In the meantime, they do need access to funds to produce.

Lastly 'Image' is one of, if not the kingpin in this battle that we fight for black women, therefore it needs to be given priority and focus.

[deborah]

"Nor does entertainment cause people to have racist ideas about black people. If that were the case, then white people would be viewed very negatively based on the amount of filth entertainment that their racial group produces and that is not the case."--iamme73

You might want to re-think that.

White people in this country do not have the history we have and are not a numerical minority. There are many white people in decision-making positions (bankers, hiring managers, loan officers, college/grad school admission reps, etc.) whose only exposure to Black people is what they see in entertainment. How many can say their only exposure to white people is what they see in entertainment?

[Seattle Slim]

Khadija,

I am pretty sure we're grown women here so if you take issue with anything I said why are you afraid to say so? I mean, do you think I'm going to jump through the screen and beat you up? Lol how high school-ish

[gem2001]

@seattle slim,

I have no doubt that if Khadija wanted to personlly address you she would.

You are not about to turn this thread into the lunchroom in high school.

So you can address the post. Or lurk. If you want to thow down with another blogger take that BS over to your own blog.

If any one isn't acting like a grown woman its you coing up in here with this lame "I bet you won't say it to my face!" juvenile nonsense.

So address the topic or choose to lurk like thousands of other grown people who visit this blog each week.

I'm embarrassed for you.