It Ain't Just White People: 5 Times Netflix's 'Dear White People' Came For Their Own And Why

It Aint Just Wypipo: Five times the Netflix Series Dear White People Came for Their Own That You Should Look Out For

By Pamela Lewis

Dear white people,

You are not alone. I know many of you are in your bag right now, and all in your feels about Netflix s decision to actually allow a series with a title addressed directly to you and designed to tackle, head-on, some of the caucasities committed by many of your kinfolk. And I get it, the hit Dear White People, according to a popular internet meme, is sort of the equivalent to a bunch of cassette tapes in a shoe box addressed to all of you, only instead of thirteen reasons why, theyve narrowed it down to just ten episodes. But fear not, because black millennials are clearly equal-opportunity wig snatchers! Thats right, I know the title may not imply it, but trust when I tell you that yall aint the only ones being shaded. Grab your tea...and a sweater.

1. Rashida Jones

My first thought? Damn, what Rashida do to yall? My second it isnt so much what she did, but rather what her daddys genes didnt do. The show seems to call out the fact that being biracial can mean many things, and that while some mixed individuals can and will identify as black, others cant and/or wont. Rashida Jones, unlike Tracee Ellis Ross, as referenced in DWP, can, has and will play non-black roles, or roles that do not specify race at all. (Remember Karen Filippelli from The Office.) Though this reference could easily be interpreted as a mere acknowledgment of facts, the snarky vibe of the show smells like Teen Shade-it to me. While I doubt the shows creator, Justin Simien actually wants an individual to deny their other areas of racial heritage, living in a post-Lemonade world, Im thinking the majority of black folk want all black folk, no matter their percentage, to don the culture, to own that shit, and to say it with their chest.

2. Shonda Rhimes

Now this one hurt. The Netflix original begins and ends with direct stabs at the popular series Scandal, and even went as far as to procure a Kerry Washington lookalike. Of course the true person being dragged, though, is the creator, which most definitely is a sting for all Gladiator fans, myself included. Not powerhouse Shonda! Not crushing these white folk in Hollywood Shonda, and yes I did enroll in her Master class! I know I am not the only one that gasped at the mention of the TV sorceress show. After picking my edges up from the floor, I had to actually attempt to take it in, to analyze what the message was behind that snatch. And as much as I hate to do it, I must admit that theres something discomforting about a black mistress in the White House. And despite how entertaining, a lot of black folk just cant move beyond that, no matter how powerful Pope might be. Again, black millennials are not like their mamas generation, who might turn a blind eye to something like that because the shows creator is a role model for little black girls everywhere and the writing is superb! In Big Freedias voice, they did not come here to play. (Ill leave the rest out.)

3. Stacey Dash.

Because Stacey Dash. Dassit.

4. Zoe Saldana

I dont think I should have to explain this one, but here goes. Black people who have the option of othering themselves must adhere to some rules. You cant be black when you want to be and then do some caucacious shit that a normal black person would deem offensive and not expect to be yanked, hauled, towed out of our good graces. Blackface aint cool, and being lighter skinned and taking a role that wasnt for her, so much so that they tried (and failed) to blacken her skin is just as messed up as white folk who perpetrate.

5. Iyanla Vanzant

And here lies the very tricky, blurred line that black people down for the cause must walk on. The slightest misstep and youve immediately gone from healing your people to one who is just profiting off of their pain. Iyanla is most definitely the poster priestess for walking this tight rope. Is it possible to be great at fixing our communities without building a platform off of our pain and suffering? I dont want to speculate, but could it also be the delivery? Damn this is messy! You know what? Im not saying any more on this one.

It appears that Simien is calling for us as a people to be aware of the ways in which we allow blackness to be represented, not just on film but in real life as well. Included in this airing out of our dirty laundry, the show also tackles a bevy of black issues (though steeped in white supremacy) that perpetuate divisiveness such as colorism (more specifically, light skinned privilege), black nativism, Uncle Tom foolery, Hotepia, bougieness, and hateration. Yes, in a sense, we are being dragged. Theres even a scene between Samantha and Coco in which Coco argues, Is using your radio show to drag other black women part of your revolution? To which Samantha replies, If it brings truth to the masses, yes, I drags who needs dragging. So look, dont take things so personal. The show was never really directed toward you to begin with. Still dont believe me? Check out a scene in chapter four when two black characters lead with the phrase, Dear White People prior to reading each other to filth in a very heated exchange; even with the reference to white people, theyre clearly talking to one another. A phrase that started off in jest about stupid stuff white people do, became a tool of vitriol hurled at each victim of internalized oppression. Wokeness is, after all, the ability to see white supremacy in all of its forms, and the most conscious of black folk are able to recognize it in our own community and within ourselves. So really folks, this series, much like this blog post, was never meant for you, but rather for us, an attempt to hold the mirror up to ourselves. (Honestly, wouldnt you expect a title dragging white people to attract black folks more than anyone else?) Dear White People calls for both self-reflection and celebration because we as a people, very much like the characters in this series as well as the creators of black television and film, are evolving by learning from our past. Slavery might be one helluva drug, but were all discovering, both on and off camera, how to kick the habit.

Pamela Lewis is a teacher and writer in New York City. Her memoir, Teaching While Black: A New Voice On Race And Education In New York City is published through Fordham University Press.