Tag Archives: race

“Only Decent People”: The Dutch Film About Black Women’s Asses That Looks Pretty Racist

Jessica WakemanSeptember 6, 2012 //
Fat And White?
Is "fat and white" the new "sassy and black" in Hollywood? Read More »
Casting Nina Simone
Is Hollywood still colorstruck? The search for Nina Simone is skin deep. Read More »
Tokenism?
Erica says lay off "Girls" for being all-white and give black girls a show. Read More »
controversial film
Only Decent People
Booty Popping

Anyone out there in the Frisky-verse speak Dutch? Because I would really love to understand what is going on in the trailer for “Only Decent People” (“Alleen Maar Nette Mensen”), a new film in The Netherlands that many people are decrying as racist. The film is about a white Jewish guy who dumps his white girlfriend when he realizes that he really loves a woman with a big booty, so he starts dating black women. Clutch Magazine reports that the black community in The Netherlands is cricizing the film and the novel it is based on, for portraying black women as “hyper-sexual” and most valued by society for the size of (some of) their asses.  And watching the trailer, even in Dutch, it’s not hard to see how they came to that conclusion. Keep reading »

The Soapbox: Fall’s Most Controversial New Show Is “Elementary”

Lauren HunterSeptember 6, 2012 //
"Dr. Who"'s Lady Problem
A look at how the Doctor's female companions are portrayed. Read More »
Mindy's Race Jokes
The Mindy Project
"The Mindy Project" makes some squicky jokes about race. Read More »
"Arrested" Is Back
There is a God: "Arrested Development" is filming again. Read More »
Ann On "Modern Family"
Ann Romney's fave show is "Modern Family," despite the gays. Read More »

CBS’s new fall show “Elementary” has not even premiered yet, but already nerds everywhere are boycotting it. Why would people write off this modern retelling of the Sherlock Holmes story starring Lucy Liu and Jonny Lee Miller so soon?

There are a bunch of (not very good) reasons. Keep reading »

The Soapbox: In Comedy Is “Fat & White” The New “Sassy & Black”?

Erica WatsonAugust 31, 2012 //
Tokenism?
Erica says lay off "Girls" for being all-white and give black girls a show. Read More »
Casting Nina Simone
Is Hollywood still colorstruck? The search for Nina Simone is skin deep. Read More »
Mindy's Race Jokes
The Mindy Project
"The Mindy Project" makes some squicky jokes about race. Read More »

I was recently contacted through my website by a pregnant black woman who inquired about hiring me to perform standup at her baby shower. She and her husband were diehard comedy fans, and thought it would be fun to have a comic perform for their guests.

“How did you find me?” I asked. “I Googled ‘Fat Black Female Comics’ and you were one of the women that popped up!” she answered. “Everyone knows that fat black women are the funniest comics alive!”

After I hung up the phone, I sat there for a moment trying to figure out if I should be offended or not. While I understand that she was trying to be complimentary, I’m not sure if I am flattered by someone thinking that I am automatically funny just because I am plus-sized and black. Then I thought about the $1,500 she offered to pay me to stand in the middle of her living room and crack jokes for 30 minutes, and I instantly felt better. Throughout my career, I’ve been paid much less to do far worse. There was plenty of time for me to be offended later, but for now it was time to get paid!

Comedy is hard work, no matter what you look like. The perception that fat black women have an edge up, purely because of the size of their bodies, diminishes the amount of hard work, discipline and creativity that it takes for us to create this art form known as comedy. Furthermore, I think it’s crazy that someone would assume that all fat black women are funny.

On the other hand, I get it. Keep reading »

On “The Mindy Project”‘s Squicky Jokes About Race

Jessica WakemanAugust 29, 2012 //
Are Women Funny?
Mindy Kaling won't deign to answer your stupid question. Read More »
Bill Clinton's Type
Because she's "a little chunky." Read More »
Fall 2012 New Shows
10 new shows we're psyched for this fall. Read More »
The Mindy Project

It’s not easy to make offensive jokes about ignorance. One person’s ignorant joke can be another person’s joke about ignorance and even if your comedy has the best of intentions, it’s frequently misunderstood.  Offensive humor is tricky to balance, but smart humorists can do it well.

I believe Mindy Kaling from “The Office” is extremely smart and that she deserves all the success she’s garnered from her book Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? and her upcoming sitcom “The Mindy Project.” But after watching the pilot for “The Mindy Project,” which is airing on Hulu Plus, I have to say I was disappointed about several squicky jokes made about race. Keep reading »

Gabby Douglas Was “Isolated” At Gym, Called A “Slave”

Jessica WakemanAugust 28, 2012 //
Well Played: Gabby Douglas
She sure does look good in gold. Read More »
Gabby Douglas' Mom
We spoke to Natalie about raising an Olympian. Read More »
Gabby's Hair
Her teammates copped her hairstyle to show their support! Read More »
Olympics 2012
All our coverage of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London! Read More »
morning quickies
gabby douglas photo
  • In her upcoming interview with Oprah, Olympic gold medalist Gabby Douglas says she was “bullied” and “isolated” at her Virginia Beach gym for being black and was even called a “slave.” But her gym, Excalibur Gymnastics, denied the claims and called Gabby’s comments “hurtful” and “without merit.” Err, I think she would know what happened to her, guys. [iVillage]
  • Super-weird new couple alert: Russell Brand is dating Geri Halliwell from the Spice Girls after dumping Isabella Brewster. The two reportedly met while working on the London Olympics Closing Ceremony. [Stupid Celebrities]
  • Lindsay Lohan and her assistant are officially LAPD suspects in the case of $100,000 worth of stolen sunglasses and watches from a friend’s Hollywood home. [Socialite Life]
  • Flight of the Conchords have reunited (!) for a single called “Feel Inside (And Stuff Like That)” to raise money for a New Zealand charity, Cure Kids, which helps chidlren with deadly diseases. [The FW] Keep reading »

The Soapbox: Is Hollywood Still Colorstruck? The Search For Nina Simone Is Skin Deep

Erica WatsonAugust 20, 2012 //
Tokenism?
Erica says lay off "Girls" for being all-white and give black girls a show. Read More »
Race On Mad Men
Dawn on "Mad Men" photo
Teyonah Parris on playing "Mad Men"'s first black employee. Read More »
Racists Upset
Some racist "Hunger Games" fans are mad about its black actors. Read More »

When the big news was announced last week that Zoe Saldana would be playing singer Nina Simone in a biopic, black cyberspace (yes, there is a “black Twitter” and a “black Facebook”) let out a collective “Oh, hell to the naw”!

For some it was because they did not believe that Zoe had enough acting talent to pull it off. Nina Simone was an extremely complex woman in real life, and the actress assigned to do this would be embarking upon the role of a lifetime. For others, the statements ranged from “Can Zoe even sing?” to “Wait, I thought she said she was a Latina?” to “Zoe is too skinny to play Nina Simone anyway!”

As the debate continued, it became clear to me that the issues surrounding the casting of Zoe ran much deeper than her acting ability. It was “skin deep.” Once again we were seeing an example of how Hollywood just doesn’t understand black women. To mainstream America, Black is “one color fits all.” But to African-American women, the color of our skin is much more than a random hue. In many ways, it uniquely shapes who we are and how we are treated in the world. For us, body image and self-esteem does not only involve loving your womanly body for the shape of it, but also embracing your complexion, hair texture and other features in a culture that constantly reminds you that thin white women are the standard of beauty. Keep reading »

“Think Like A Man” Allegedly Banned In France Because It’s Not “Diverse” Enough

Jessica WakemanMay 21, 2012 //
Tokenism?
Erica says lay off "Girls" for being all-white and give black girls a show. Read More »
Race On
Dawn on "Mad Men" photo
Teyonah Parris on playing "Mad Men"'s first black employee. Read More »
Where Are Black Folks?
Charlie Rose Mad Men photo
Matt Weiner explains why there aren't more black folks on "Mad Men." Read More »
Rihanna Called N-Word
Jackie magazine refers to Rihanna as "N----Bitch." Read More »
Think Like A Man

“Think Like A Man,” the new Tyler Perry romantic comedy [Update: based on a book by Steve Harvey] about black women and men, has allegedly been banned in France because officials say the film is not diverse enough. According to blogger Fabienne Flessel at the blog Global Voices:

Surprising as it may be, the answer lies in the fact that the film has an all-black cast. French cinema is often pointed at for not fairly displaying all components of the country’s multiethnic population. 

It is unclear, though, whether “Think Like A Man” has literally been banned, or if it just is not being screened. But the Global Voices blogger and several other French-speaking bloggers quoted/translated in his article seem adamant that someone in a position of power in France is uninterested in promoting films by and about black folks. One blogger claims “Tyler Perry’s movies are never scheduled in any French movie theaters or are only released in DVDs, even thought he has been used to leading the U.S. box office.”  Keep reading »

Evening Quickies: George Zimmerman Enters “Not Guilty” Plea

Jessica WakemanMay 8, 2012 //
Trayvon Martin
Will there be justice in the death of this innocent teen? Read More »
He'd Look Like Me
President Obama responds to the death of an innocent black teen. Read More »
Geraldo's Mustache
Forget Trayvon and his hoodie. Let's talk Geraldo's perv 'stache. Read More »
George Zimmerman photo

The Soapbox: Can TV Spare Some Change? A Token Negro, Perhaps?

Erica WatsonMay 3, 2012 //
Erica Watson Controversy
Erica Watson Love That Girl
TV show should be ashamed of their fat-shaming. Read More »
Give Dunham A Break
She's not the voice of a generation -- and that's okay! Read More »
Erica Watson Q&A
The actress talks about her on woman show and "Precious." Read More »

I have never watched HBO’s new show “Girls.”  Not because I don’t want to — I’m actually excited to see a new female-centered TV show that allows actresses to play rich and diverse characters.  But unfortunately, the current role I play in real life, that of a struggling comic/actress, does not afford me the opportunity to indulge in the many simple pleasures of life such as HBO. Although I have not seen the show, I have seen and heard much of the praise and criticism the show has garnered — especially around the all-white cast. Keep reading »

Teyonah Parris On Playing “Mad Men”‘s First Black Employee

Jessica WakemanApril 13, 2012 //
Where Are Black Folks?
Charlie Rose Mad Men photo
Matt Weiner explains why there aren't more black folks on "Mad Men." Read More »
"Mad Men" History Lesson
Set your clocks back to 1964... 12 Photos »
"Mad Men" Dating Style
Are you a Joan? A Peggy? Or maybe you're a Trudy. Read More »
Dawn on "Mad Men" photo

“I know that this show hasn’t had an African-American in the office and I know that comes with a lot of responsibility as to how I portray this woman, but I can’t think about that. I can only go in and do what I think this woman would do. I try not to think, ‘Oh, I have to represent every single black person in the world that was there in the ’60s.’ I have to tell this one woman’s story and what that was for her. I’m kind of on the fence because as a black actress, there aren’t a lot of roles out there for us, and so you see a great show and it’s like, ‘Oh wow, I would love to be on that show. Oh, but there are no black people on it.’ So that part is frustrating and I understand that, but at the same time I don’t expect to be a part of everyone’s story if it’s not true to the story that they’re trying to tell.”

– Teyonah Parris, who plays Don’s new secretary, Dawn, on “Mad Men,” opens up about playing the first black employee at Sterling Cooper Draper Price. Creator Matt Weiner spoke really eloquently on the PBS news program “Charlie Rose” recently about how he wants civil rights issues on “Mad Men” to be historically accurate. But for Teyonah Parris’ sake, she doesn’t get stuck having to “represent every single black person in the world that was there in the ’60s.” It’s all too easy to assume one person’s story is supposed to speak for everybody. [NYMag.com]

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