(Insomniac internet browsing session in full effect. It feels odd to revisit this blog after nearly a year of getting my thoughts out in my digital analog journals. I still haven't decided on which method I prefer.)
I just ran across this article on The Root: http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2015/09/we_do_not_need_to_be_saved_from_empire_or_scandal_or_htgawm_or.html?wpisrc=topstories
Quite timely, don't you think? With the fall TV season starting, all the self-righteous "I hate everything" folks are gearing up. I think I first encountered this attitude in full effect a few years ago when I watched Scandal regularly. A very annoying subset of Black men were convinced that Black women who liked Scandal supported extra-marital affairs. They honestly thought that all Scandal fans lacked the ability to separate reality from a TV drama. "Y'all cheering for Olivia & Fitz, but if some woman was screwing your husband you'd be mad!!" Ummm...duh. So I guess we should assume that since you enjoy violent movies, you support people having massive public gunfights? To this day, I believe that a lot of early Scandal hate was rooted in their belief that Black women are inherently unintelligent; that our moral compasses are so broken that we would blindly mimic the antics of an adulterous TV character.
Fast forward to autumn 2015. We now have Empire and HTGAWM (most cumbersome show title ever) in addition to Scandal. Couple these with the more family-friendly Black-ish, and we have a recipe for a renewed Black pop culture war. You're a "good" Black person if you tune in to Black-ish instead of Empire on Wednesday nights. If you don't, you're part of the "problem." As a community, we have to stop thinking in binaries. A person isn't lazy or dismissive of social issues because they indulge in trash TV once (or twice) a week. Women aren't going to drop everything & start sleeping with married men because they watch Scandal. The truth is that we could all make better use of our time. However, people who work 24/7 without ever taking a break, people who can't take jokes, people who can't enjoy anything without over-analyzing, aren't full human beings. And frankly, most of them end up with premature wrinkles & hypertension. Not cute.
On a personal level, I know that I used to be one of those self-righteous blowhards. On some things, I still am, to be honest. But as I age, I've come to appreciate the need for balance and the value of permitting people their little vices. I
think we would all be better off if we embraced our inner ratchet more
often. It's humbling. Shoot, I'm always lamenting the declining quality
of hip-hop, but even I couldn't resist jamming to
Fetty Wap's new album today at work. I have also learned not to underestimate the complexity of human nature or overestimate the viability of outward appearances. The people whom you think are passively watching TV might be able to blow your mind with theoretical analyses of every aspect of their favorite shows. The people always carrying a book might not be able to articulate a single original thought.
Much can be said of the deleterious effects of TV, but there is a lot going on in this world. If people need to unplug from work, activism, or screaming toddlers for an hour to chill with a glass of wine and their favorite show, let them.
That article is on to something: Many folks have gone beyond just not liking popular TV, which is totally understandable, to this overzealous obsession with judging everyone who does. I agree that underneath all this is the belief that Black people are so doggone basic that we can't separate TV from reality, that we can't work for the betterment of our communities and root for Cookie Lyon at the same time. Yes, these shows are problematic, as most popular things are, but you don't get bonus Black Revolutionary Points for spending all your time scolding strangers on the internet for watching them.
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