Is anyone else watching Black. White. on FX?

[wildeyed]

Promising series, just judging form the first show.

[undergroundrailroad]

1. Could you share your thoughts after the first show?

Undergroundrailroad :hi:

[wildeyed]

2. It made me uncomfortable and sad, but in a good way.

The families are talking about things that never get talked about person to person, but probably should. What is that quote about race being the third rail in american life? Well they are touching the third rail and it is kind of scary to watch.

I felt bad that the white guy in the bar came right out and said what he said about "keeping the neighborhood white", but that is realistic. People want to have that type of conversation with me all the time. They assume that because I am white I will be sympathetic to that line of thought.

I am angry that the white dad keeps telling the black dad that the racism is all in his head, it is just his reaction that makes it powerful. There is a germ of truth there, but it is also like telling someone, well if you just had a better attitude about cancer, then it wouldn't hurt so much.

The black mom seems angry and dismissive toward the white family without really knowing them. The white mom is incredibly clueless and annoying. Something is brewing there.

The kids are both so adorable, so far they are the only ones that are easy to like, even if the white girl's poetry is execrable.

I dunno, just based on the first episode, it is going to be a really interesting series. I usually hate reality shows, they tend to be either hateful, silly or both, but this one is different. It is actually taking a very difficult issue and addressing it in a creative way, using a format that is popular, entertaining and mainstream. Cool.

Here is a link to the website for anyone who is interested. http://www.fxnetworks.com/shows/originals/blackwhite/main.html



Did you get a chance to see the first episode?

[Brewman_Jax]

3. Here's the interview from NPR

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5249579

The white dad is like most--they don't see racism, so it doesn't exist. They'll acknowledge that it exists, but that's it. :shrug: That I've always found most frustrating. Now, if someone black does something they don't like to them or they are affected, it's reverse racism. :eyes:

Haven't watched it for that very reason, the white guy is not gonna learn anything, 'cause he knows that he get his "white guy club" card back and life is back to normal.

[wildeyed]

4. Bruno is such an ass.

He comes off even worse in that clip than he does on the show.

In my experience, the racist "just us white people talking" comments vary a lot from community to community. I managed to go through my first 30 years almost never hearing an adult make an overtly racist comment. Since I have moved to the South, it is practically a weekly event. So Bruno may be correct in saying that he never hears those kinds of comments, but to then extrapolate that Brian's experiences of racism are made up kind of blows my mind. You are right, he can poo poo Brian's experience because he goes back to his white life at the end of the six weeks.

[Brewman_Jax]

5. To make this a real show

tell Bruno that his skin had a chemical reaction to the makeup and he's gonna stay black for a couple of extra months. His jaw will hit the floor when he hears he can't go back.

Like Chris Rock said, "white people know the value of being white. Hell, an old white hobo wouldn't trade places with me--and I'm rich!"

[wildeyed]

6. Extra months? How 'bout forever.

Since racism is no biggie, provided you have the right attitude, he won't mind, right? :rofl:

I think the show is more subtle than the NPR clip made it out to be, at least I am hoping it turns out that way. And if it gets people talking and maybe thinking just a little, then that will be a good thing.

[Brewman_Jax]

7. I may have to watch an episode

I'll check the FX listings.

[msgadget]

8. I watched part of an episode this evening

and it made me edgy.

The young white daughter was so naively earnest that I was actually scared for her but, like all young foolish people, she forged on ahead and outed herself to and was accepted by her writing group (phew). Her mother, unfortunately, ruined the gathering with her utter cluelessness.

I know people like her, very open, comfortable in their skin (no pun intended), entitled and forward with no reserve whatsoever. They assume an inherent right to be wherever they are, as they are. The black family on the other hand, is very guarded and reserved so naturally they stuck these two poor families together in one damned house.

ANYWAY, she didn't even realize how condescending she was in her excess praise for the performers and their performances and neither did her husband. She's got a great kid who winced but defended her, which was something I hope all teenagers took note of, btw. :)

The black father just doesn't seem to like his housemates at all and it's probably because the other guy is slightly 'so what's the big deal?' about everything, which offends him. I got the feeling the black family feels the white family views them as specimens and could come out of their mouth with some unwitting, racist remark at any moment. The whites seem to feel the blacks are too sensitve, that they make too big a deal about every little thing. I didn't see any interaction between the kids but the girl seems more interested in herself than anyone else in the house and the young man seems to align with his father.

I do think the black woman misled what's-her-name about the dashikis though. She didn't come out and say, "No, this isn't the 70's or a costume party, honey, it's church". Instead she let this woman rhapsodize and get caught up in some cultural fantasy and then sided with her husband when he said they'd look ridiculous. After the episode with the writing group she'll either be ultra-polite and ultra-offended at everything that happens from here on out or there'll be a blow up or they'll gel into a friendship (it is TV). I don't know that I can stand to watch it again, truth be told. I hate reality TV because we never see what gets left on the cutting room floor and because if it was meant to prove something they'll edit it so it does.

[Brewman_Jax]

9. Thanks for the update

John McWhorter had a review of the show on NPR yesterday, found at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5282206. IMO, McWhorter is a lawn jockey who thinks that the US is now some utopia of equality after only 40 years. Don't worry about the previous 350 years of slavery, Jim Crow, no civil rights or recourse, and bad feelings and attitudes. Yeah, right. :eyes:

Some columnist wrote (I want to say Tim Wise, I can't verify who) that blacks see racism everywhere because whites see racism nowhere. I think the worse thing is the cluelessness. Dashikis? I haven't seen one since I was a teen, and I saw very few in person, just on TV. Yeah, I would have let them make fools of themselves, too.

A moment like that for me: in the early '90's, I was one of the few non-white faces at a party. I was in a small group of 3 when the topic had come to colleges. The white guy said that he had gone to N. GA College. I said that I had gone to the basketball school in Midtown (Atlanta). He said, "really? Did you go to Morris Brown? Morehouse?" and he rambled off the AUC schools. Anyone who has lived in Atlanta for any length of time, esp. early 90's, knows 1 or both of 2 basic facts: the AUC campus is NOT in Midtown, and the Div. IA basketball school intown was (and still is, we won't talk about this season :P) Ga. Tech. I asked the young lady next to me, who was white, to tell him, she said Ga. Tech. He looked embarrassed and soon walked away. I was thinking, are white folks really that--white? They can't conceive of anyone going to any college? Black people all go to HBCU's and white people go to any college except HBCU's? Will they learn anything on the show? From the interviews and review, it looks like they won't learn much.

[wildeyed]

10. That was painful to watch.

Of course I get nervous when people do stupid things on a sitcom and have to leave the room, so you know that this series is driving me nuts, but I think I am going to keep watching it anyway. It is interesting to see the different points of view and how they affect perceptions of actual events. Both groups (minus the children) bring strong points of view to the table. So what is truth?

Just as interesting is hearing the commentary that Argyle has been posting, and hearing other people's perceptions of the cast member's perceptions.

It will be interesting to see if they manage to resolve any of the tension in a productive manner at the end of the series.

[msgadget]

12. I left the room too!

I can't stand to see people captured at their worst and I feel that's what's going with these couples. All I know for sure is that the white couple has no context for the wariness and subtle hostility of the black couple. Is it racism, the smugness of privilege or just plain 'ol ignorance? I vote for the latter. For some dumb ass reason they've reached a conclusion they're not qualified to make. If I went to Asia I'd probably crash about insulting people left and right without even knowing how or why but I'd do so aware of my ignorance. These people are not and I'm embarassed for them.

I missed the first episode (and everything on the cutting room floor) so I'm surprised at the lack of tolerance from the black couple. They're smart, obviously haven't lived in a vacuum but they have NO patience for their housemates. Granted, I've been told I'm too tolerant, that I use the ignorance 'excuse' too often but that's the way I see it. People with different experiences react to things differently. It's the putting down of one group's reactions that is racist.

[wildeyed]

13. "they've reached a conclusion they're not qualified to make"

This is what always surprises me about discussions on race. Whites often just dismiss the experience of blacks, or think the should "get over it". Not a very intelligent conclusion, and rude to boot.

When I am in any new situation, I sit back, watch what others do and try to be as inoffensive as possible until I have figured out the rules. These white people crash about like the proverbial bull in the china shop. Are all white people this clueless? They have no boundaries and it is hard to watch. The funny thing is, if I met Carmen in real life, I would probably like her. But in the context of the show, she is difficult to take.

The black mom especially seems intolerant of the white's ignorance, but I kind of understand. There is a certain type of woman I meet periodically here in the south who just sends my hackles up. She is a size 2, white, self-appointed upper-class snob wearing expensive jewelry with overly blond hair, an empty head and a fancy pocket book. I lived in a neighborhood infested with them for four years. I get any kind of whiff of attitude or superiority off them, and I am ready to rumble. I don't take a scintilla of shit. If I was in a situation where I was dominate, it would be hard for me to be kind. The problem with the show is, without an explanation of the context, of what she experienced in the past, Renee just comes off as mean.

To me what this show seems to really be about is race and context. How our upbringing and previous experiences shape our view of race, and how it can make it almost impossible to have a reasonable discussion. What would be really interesting is if they do another Black. White. but with people who are less entrenched in their point of view and capable of real change.

[fortyfeetunder]

11. Nope, not even going to watch

Based on what I've read so far, the families chosen (perhaps intentionally) from the lowest common denominator America. If this does give them a wake up call, so be it. I'll wait until the show comes out on video....

[Brewman_Jax]

14. Let's make it a real experience for the white family

Let Jane Elliott have them in one of her seminars for a couple of days. They'll know real pain and won't be able to explain it away. :evilgrin:

[Brewman_Jax]

15. Did anyone watch the final episode

Did the people on the show learn anything or was it a great waste of time? :shrug: