June 8, 2011

Let me explain:

Last weekend at The Pyramid a girlfriend and I were having a bathroom stall-to-stall conversation and I mentioned The Boondocks, one of my favourite TV shows. In case you haven't seen it, it's a social satire of African American culture based on a comic series written by Aaron McGruder.

At first glance it's the most racist thing I've ever seen; basically every character drops the N-bomb multiple times an episode and essentially every African American (can I say 'Black' since I'm in Canada?) stereotype is ridiculed constantly. But the only way you'd think that The Boondocks was a racist television show is if you were living with your head in the deepest recesses of your asshole. It's a brilliant piece of satire and has been mentioned as one of the best TV shows of 2010 in the New York Times.

Here's one such example:



It's one of the cleanest clips I could find, honestly.

But why am I telling you this?

Because after I mentioned it we heard "wouldn't it be funny if you walked out of your stalls and there was a Black person standing there?" and wouldn't you know it, there was a Black girl standing there who called me a racist (among other things) and stormed out.

I could be mistaken, but how does praising a show that explores racism and societal issues by presenting them from a comedic standpoint make me a racist? It seems like the most effective way to challenge, explore and understand issues like racism is through humour and satire (along with open-mindedness). In fact, that's what satire is supposed to do.

So what have we learned today?

1. Racism is a problem, but flipping out isn't going to help. Understand that satire exists to ridicule individuals, and society itself, into improvement. Flipping out about it actually goes against what satire like The Boondocks is trying to accomplish. So develop a freaking sense of humour.

2. Don't talk about satire in the bathroom. Not everyone gets it and might call you mean names as you're washing your hands.

3. Or maybe save yourself the hassle and just don't talk while in the bathroom.