Okay...I read the infamous Open Letter to Tyler Perry.
First, I want to state that I have not always been in Tyler's corner. I actually do not like all the characters that he has created which in my opinion are either alter egos or figments of his imagination that he loves dearly and loathes secretly. Like a lot of people Tyler has demons; and apparently the demons subconsciously surface when he is thinking about a movie script that will more than likely make viewers laugh and cry.
With this recent soon to be dashing uproar, I must say that I am seriously fed-up with the complaining about what Perry does and doesn't do. He is an entertainer. The objective ultimately is to make money. Just like the Hollywood Jews do on the daily. Those Jews are in fact the Jewish population that black people help make billions by flocking to see an array of blockbusters!
What Perry is not is what so many attach to him...he is NOT responsible for the Black Cause. He is not a self-declared black activist. He definitely is not responsible for the Black Demise. The latter has been a part of black society for decades - and in most cases black people are the reason for the DEMISE.
Tyler Perry has rejuvenated the careers of so many black actors including the most popular among the black thespians...Angela Basset. Casting Kim Kardashian should not be an issue within the ranks of black females.
How about black women addressing the obvious: the reason the angry, downtrodden, depressed, insane, desperate black female made its way to the small and big screen. Tyler did not make up The Angry Black Woman. Hell, I see/communicate with a different one every single day. She is usually the pompously irate black woman in the Starbucks line…furious because she is running late for The Plantation.
Black women have directly and indirectly created a milieu that projects and supports the physiognomies that I have listed. Now, does this mean that all black women behave like an uptight and vengeful woman...NO! My momma and the moms within her generation have proven that!
What it does imply is that TOO MANY black women are of this pathetic disposition. If it were not spot-on there would be no debate, argument, or controversy over an Armenian woman playing a leading role in Tyler Perry’s upcoming film. Additionally, to grudgingly sidestep the obvious some black women are voicing that Kim Kardashian is not a good selection for the Marriage Counselor because she cannot act. And, Tasha Smith can act…? She is being herself on screen - or what she was in her former lifetime: an unhinged drug addict. Yes…the undesirable elements within Tasha Smith’s past life can easily be morphed into a potential Tyler Perry character.
To say that Tyler Perry "hates black women” is an emotionally irrational indictment! How does anyone determine that he hates black women when they are not in his immediate circle of family and friends? I believe he loves black women. I believe the characters he has created…with the help of the unwanted realities within the black family…are family members of countless real black families, The Madea and the Mr. Brown. So, what is the problem considering he has had tons of black assistance with black character formation? What's the issue? Is it that Tyler Perry continues to Air Dirty Laundry? Yes...that's it. He is putting us on Front Street. Conversely, I do not believe that he intends to embarrass African Americans. He is presenting the reality that exists for many.
Once again, we -well not me any longer- are attacking the messenger. I have learned the hard way that the descendants of African slaves are purposely conflicted. Besides, messages are sent via the most deranged of us e.g. Billie Holiday, Donnie Hathaway, Tupac Shakur.
I grew-up in a small town. In that small town there was once a man by the name of Jim Blayent. He was the Small, Jacob, Marsh Street and Douglas Drive Drunk. The Rabbit Quarter Otis. Mr. Jim was always walking up and down the streets singing and dancing reeking of Seagram’s Gin. He was porch monkeying his way through life as a blotto. No one ever questioned why he got so plastered every weekend. No one. What we did was laugh at and with him. What we did was learn from him too. He was a hood professor. He introduced me to Booker T. Washington, he talked about slavery, he told stories about his time in the Army...he was so much to so many. Including a Drunk. Still, Mr. Jim was a teacher! He shared tales that were laced with Life Lessons. He passed on The Message. He was a Messenger. And, guess what? Jim Blayent could be a character within a Tyler Perry film.
I ask,
Would you have an issue with Tyler 'highlighting' someone like Jim Blayent? Would you claim that Tyler does not care about black men...black people? Would you conclude that Tyler is supporting buffoonery?
Black people need to worry themselves with their extremely low black male high school graduation rate, blacks killing blacks, the escalating black prisoner population, and the health of black people domestically and worldwide. Look at us: we are suffering from obesity complications (mostly black females, btw)! Look at us: we still refuse to address HIV/AIDS within the black church! Look at us: we refuse to accept that we are a mentally ill people! Look at us: we allow black preachers to bankrupt us spiritually and financially!
Look at us - and not Tyler Perry in the singular! He is doing much much more for us than all the black NBA and NFL slaves combined. And, more than these disgusting Word bootlegging ministers!
The truth is that Tyler Perry does not owe black people a damn thing! Black people give him the ammunition for his productions! He could easily load-up his movies with wealthy white actors. But no…Tyler is foolishly loyal to black people while countless blacks purchase his movies at barber shops and nail salons.
The Black Rebel
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