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I hated Chris Rock’s opening monologue for the 88th Annual Academy Awards. I hated his Stacey Dash stunt. I probably would have hated more things, but I changed the channel and fled social media.
My reasons for detesting the monologue are pretty old-Black and, therefore, not so popular. Here they are anyway, in no particular order:
One: Rock was foul for saying that Jada Pinkett Smith was only boycotting the Oscars because she wasn’t invited. I can see why some see Pinkett Smith’s actions as calculated and insincere, but Rock didn’t say that. Instead, he reduced everything—the #OscarsSoWhite hashtag, the boycott and the alternate events (including one starring his brother)—to the sour grapes of a self-centered, spoiled, unqualified Black woman. It was also dumb. Because Jada Pinkett Smith can get into the Oscars.
Two: #OscarsSoWhite isn’t some silly little hashtag. This year, people of all races have used it to talk about the problems large and small with an awards show that nominates strictly White actors across 20 categories. Plus the hashtag, news coverage and discussions provided Cheryl Boone Isaacs, the Black woman who heads up the Academy, with the political cover I believe she needed to change membership and voting rules that have grossly privileged elderly White men for years.
Three: Claiming that Black people care about #OscarsSoWhite because we have nothing real to be mad about was hostile to the truth. Here is a man who made an (uneven, sexist) documentary about Black hair in 2009 because his daughter was sad about not having “good hair.” But in 2016, Rock knows nothing of contemporary Black struggle? Like, when people say ”Black lives matter,” does he hear, ”Tekjjdioj gj()gui p;/00+”? Does “I can’t breathe” bring anything to mind? How about “Sandra Bland,” “Michael Brown,” “Eric Garner” and “not guilty”?
Four: Using the image of a Black grandmother hanging from a tree as a punch line was blasphemous. This country has never atoned for its history of lynching, castrating and fatally dragging Black people from pickup trucks. Nor has it meaningfully addressed the burning of entire Black towns, race riots and other lynching-adjacent crimes.
And, while nooses are no longer all the rage, it is quite on trend for law enforcement and self-declared surrogates to shoot, strangle, rape, beat, harass, sit on, throw to the ground, falsely imprison and otherwise terrorize Black people of all ages and gender expressions. Just a day before Rock did his monologue, Salt Lake City police shot a 16-year-old Black boy for holding a fucking broomstick. On February 21, Inglewood, Calif., police fatally shot a Black couple who were asleep or unconscious in their car. Police did so after spending 45 minutes “trying to rouse them,” according to the mayor’s account. Kisha Michael was a 31-year-old mother of three sons. Marquintan Sandlin, 32, had four daughters. Now these parents are dead.
Five: Even without the anti-Asian bit after the monologue* that my colleague Sameer Rao cited earlier today, Rock’s disrespect didn’t stop at Black struggle. He effectively disappeared an encyclopedia of interlocking issues within the broader movement for racial justice. Among these real-people problems:
- A popular Republican presidential candidate plans to build a wall between the United States and Mexico and ban all Muslims—a.k.a. Arabs and South Asians—from the country.
- Another GOP candidate says that if elected, he will immediately deport and forever ban some 12 million undocumented people, most of whom are Latino like him.
- White supremacists and other civilians are straight killing and beating men and women they perceive to be Muslim because news media, politicians and Hollywood conflate Islam with terrorism.
- Police are more likely to kill Native Americans than those in every other racial group besides Blacks.
- There’s one abortion provider left in Louisiana.
- Millions of people have lost their homes thanks to predatory lending.
- We couldn’t get sane gun reform even after a gun-toting young man massacred 20 children and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
- People of all races are trying to support their families on $7.25 an hour. Meanwhile Alabama and other states are outlawing hard-won minimum-wage increases.
- Trans women of color are murdered at an alarming rate, and unemployment among trans people of color is up to four times that of cisgender people.
And the list goes on.
Six: Rock spending all that oxygen on Pinkett Smith was sexist. She wasn’t the one who told him to quit his hosting gig; Tyrese Gibson and 50 Cent did that. Boycotter Spike Lee said essentially the same thing about Rock as Pinkett Smith did, that he was a friend whom he wished well. But somehow a woman stating the obvious—that the Oscars have a race problem—was just about her caping for her husband? Stop it.
Also, that part about Rihanna’s panties was nasty. To put this in perspective, Rihanna was only 3 when a fully grown Rock played Pookie in “New Jack City.”
Seven: Rock mocking Pinkett Smith for being on TV was reality-avoidant. Nowadays, television offers more consistent, even quality, work for actors of color and aging White ones. It’s where you find characters that are complicated, provocative, contradictory, quirky, silly and powerful. TV—network and streaming—is why we have ”Jane the Virgin,” ”black-ish,”“Master of None,” “Fresh Off the Boat,” ”American Crime,” “Mr. Robot,” ”Scandal,” “How to Get Away With Murder,” “The Walking Dead,” “Orange is the New Black,” and a grip of other programs that aren’t perfect but don’t limit people of color to bouncing basketballs, running convenience stores, acting spicy, calling everyone esé, and being inherently passive grade-grubbers. Film is where you get a bunch of White people playing Egyptians in a $140-million flop.
Eight: It was humiliating and painful to watch a Black man make fun of a Black woman and Black struggle for the uneasy laughter of a staggeringly White audience. It’s almost cliché to point out that there’s a difference between laughing with us and laughing at us. But Rock was such a cliché monster at the 88th Annual Academy Awards, this may be the only language he understands nowadays.
*Post has been updated for clarity. The racist bit targeting Asian people took place during the broadcast, after the monologue.
48 Comments
I found Chris Rock's monologue to be incredible. I know he struck a lot of nerves amongst all people, but Chris bought attention to the everyday black struggle and pursuit of equality and opportunity. This article is disturbing because it harms the main objective here. Chris even said it himself, he was going to boycott the oscars as well, but the awards would have went on with "light" discussion on diversity. But let's be honest, as Chris noted, there have been plenty of prior oscars with no attention to black actors being nominated. Only recently have Will and Jada used their platform to speak on black issues and the nomination process. Chris Rock used his platform to capture the real and terrible history of blacks in this country. It was not pretty, my grandfather told me a story where the KKK came to his home to kill my great grandfather. My great grandfather scared them off with his old, broken, empty bullet shotgun. Black history in America is ugly and violent, and most important, it is the truth. A truth many white people have denied through the crux of their privilege in never feeling discrimination, or feared, or even sitting in room full of millionaires at the oscars hearing truth through jokes is overbearing for them so much so, a frown or laughther were the only matters of expression conceived. Empathy was non-existent. Also, the black struggle is unique and deserves it's own voice and stage. Other minorities and oppressed groups must advocate and support each other equally to see true social change. This lacks however, interdependence lacks. Thus, let the black expressive voice stand on its own. Chris used his platform as a host and comedian to bring light to a societal issue rather than an "oscars diversity" issue. Also, black generalizations and stereotypes are used so much, no one has a problem with it who isn't black (Sasha Cohen borat guy using his fist as the black power symbol). No one seemed to have a problem. Chris Rock is incredibly smart and gifted. This was an examination not of him, but our American landscape and history.
Again, there is a huge difference between laughing with us and laughing at us. Grandmothers lynchings and police shooting Black people aren't joke headers! C'mon man... really?
preach....and this is coming from someone who really didnt like his Asian joke with those kids
Granted what you said is true but Chris Rock is NOT the person to bring a voice to those issues!! he is a cooning dumbass trying to stay popular with white people and if this a**hole had so much to say then why did HE wait until Jada spoke out about it?!! Isn't that fool in his 40's give me a damn break, he is loved by white Hollyweird because he has no problem being their monkey dancing to an organ grinder. The only thing is he has never gotten his Negro moment yet, and why is he bucking his eyes like a Sambo in EVERY picture!! He has become nothing but a pathetic, irritating, white ass kissing cliché. I never understood why people think he is some 'brilliant' social satirist, please he is nothing but the white man's dancing boy and a painfully unfunny one at that.
This was a really well articulated critique of Chris Rock's Oscar hosting. The points about him denigrating television are very well made as it is indeed true that there is far more diversity there now. "Film is where you get a bunch of White people playing Egyptians in a $140-million flop." Touche!
You are certainly entitles to your opinion. However it seems that you have tried to list eight issues you had with the monologue but four of your points are basically about your being offended that Rock "picked" on Pinkett-Smith. I personally found the monologue very well done and thought provoking. Which is what I think Chris Rock was going for. Again, my personal feelings on the matter are that the Academy is not the cause of the problem but a result of it. The problem is that Hollywood is not giving black actors the roles in the numbers that would allow for them to have more folks in contention come Oscar time. The Academy gives out four "best" acting awards per year (best and best supporting male and female). Each of them has five nominees so a total of 20 possible people get nominated per year. Of the thousands of roles in movies per year, the vast majority of them go to white actors. To me, it then stands to reason that most of the time, most, or all, of the nominees would be white.
I certainly would like to see a more diverse set of actors getting more roles (not just blacks but asians, hispanics, native American, etc. Progress has been made but there is a long, long way still to go. To me it would be just as silly if all of a sudden year after year we saw a slate of nominees that were totally comprised of non-white actors. It would strike us as odd and it would be just as unrealistic.
My suggestion on how to further black progress on getting more black actors up on Oscar's stage... make more of our own films, form more of our own production companies, train and utilize more of our black talent behind the screen as writers, directors, line producers, editors, DPs, etc. The more opportunities black actors get, the more chances we will have of seeing them take home the Academy's greatest prizes.
To me, boycotting the Oscars does not fix the problem as the Oscars are simply reflecting where the true problems lie. Fix those and then there won't be any need to boycott the Oscars.
I'm speaking from an Asian-American perspective:
I love Chris Rock's monologue for a number of reasons. 1. He started a dialogue that was digestible by a lot of people. It wasn't so over the top that people immediately stopped listening and it wasn't so light that it was just a minor rap on the wrist- he played a fine line. I think Chris Rock knew he was going to get crapped on no matter what.
I think a lot of people don't understand humor and at the same time I like that because it's creating such a discussion. It's created such a dialogue.. in such a matter that I'm actually kind of glad now he threw in that joke about the Asian kids- he literally told the Asian community to get mad about it and they did. And if there's anything that should be known about the Asian entertainment community (they are very angry at the lack of Asian representation always)-- not saying that's wrong.. It's absolutely justified.. But I feel sometimes.. they're unable to understand another perspective. Sometimes I feel they are too grounded in their hurt and pain to move past it and create a constructive dialogue-- but that's just my opinion.
Because the difficulty of humor, I think a lot of people might not be getting the joke. I mean I seriously can't tell at this point. Everyone is reacting differently, interpreting jokes differently and I think the crucial reason why is how humor works. Humor is about privilege, right? It's funny if you're "in" on the joke. It could also be said that it's a way of "getting" the joke-- and a lot of people are going, hey Chris, you're not getting it! At the same time, there are also people that are like Chris, you did a good job, but that was in poor taste.
So why do some people "get" the joke and some people don't. For the Asian joke, it is clear from their outrage that they feel that Chris has more privilege than them. How could you represent us in that way when we have no representation?! - is the message I'm hearing. And that is quite a thought provoking question. I see it differently, I feel like when Chris talked about race on that stage, he was talking about diversity, and diversity kind of applies to everyone, whether Chris knows it or not or whether the Asian community knows it or not.. Or that's what I thought.. #confused #conflicted
Anyway, I'm not trying to minimize the outrage of the Asian community in any way. I have been told that I have been guilty of tone policing.
Comedy typically has a target. That's how it makes its points. He took some big chances got some laughs, got people thinking and then made some more points. Eventually later in the program he really made his point by interviewing some folks outside of a black theater. Most had never heard of the films that were nominated or even the actors. Those interviews did more to show the great divide between the white and the black film industries. Those interviews would not have been nearly so telling had he not done the monologue. I thought he did a great job.
I don't know what impact jada's and other's boycot had in regard to shedding light on the problem or resolving it. Chris had a hugh audience and was able to hit the issues head on....which I would think had a bigger impact. Keeping that snowball rolling.
I don't agree with this. Rock had to infuse comedy into his opening monologue, and I though he did a decent job at attempting to strike a balance between bringing light to important issues and maintaining a jubilant ambience of an Academy Awards host. Though I thought his Rihanna and Smith jokes were uncalled-for (could have done without them) never once did I think Rock ridiculed the larger issue at hand. There could be an argument that the Academy did not go far enough in tackling the problem of diversity--but strictly speaking of the show, Rock did well at engaging in the topic without sounding condescending to a largely white audience.
Re-read the article dude. You can't be serious.
this article was such feminist outcry. sorry we can't joke about Rihanna's panties b/c god forbid that's fucking sexist
That was not my point peter. I do think his Smith and Rihanna jokes were sexist. I was talking about the main focus of his monologue: Diversity--I'm saying I didn't agree with the article in saying the issue was drowned in ridicule. He sincerely talked about opportunity and the neoliberal hypocrisy of "sorority racism"--these were mixed-in with (poor?) comedy which I though struck a balance.
You must be a white douchbag, Chris Rock was awesome!
I'm Black and making light of Blacks getting shot by police and grandma getting lynched was far more shameful than that Stacey Dash bs. It really saddens me that the struggles our grandparents faced are now butts to jokes of a damn near all White audience.
I don't think it was the butt of the joke or making light of our struggle.Because of your comment I listened to the monologue again. Shen Chris says line "......when your grandmother is hanging from a tree the last thing......blah blah blah" I believe that he is masterfully shedding light on why we are pissed NOW/today because of the lack of representation in film opposed to our focus 56-60 years ago. That has been a question. Why are black people so upset now. His delivery of that line is so powerful and is meant for the violators not to discredit our struggle as black people. Just my take on this. Thanks for voicing your opinion.
Oh please!! Chris is a fool and worse than that he is a DAMN FOOL!! He is an immature, stupid, grinning ninny assclown kissing white ass to stay relevant and popular. if it's such a worthless issue why even comment? Especially if it makes him look like even more of a buffoon that he already does. he is so fixated with pleasing white daddy it's sickening. It's always better to be thought an idiot than open your mouth and relive all doubt
chris was awesome!
Chris Rock touched on every point and left no rock unturned. He brought humor to very serious issue. When Blacks have won previously it was for no threatening, stereo typical, ghetto roles Monster Ball with Halle Berry and Denzel Washington where he was a crooked cop (the name of the movie escapes me right now). The point is in my opinion America is going backwards and whites are more than ever blatant in their racism in the movies, jobs, police, court system, banks approving mortgage loans, Flint's water issues and life period! I personally am proud that Chris Rock took very specific situations Stacey Dash and exposed them, made people feel uncomfortable however I wasn't and made people face reality.
I passed on the Oscars and any coverage of it entirely in support of #oscarssowhite. Your story is the first impression of how it played out insofar as Rock's hosting. Sadly it sounds like he was just playing to the crowd... keeping those gig-leads coming.
I can imagine Hollywood money is going to shy away from those who took a stand... and continue flowing for those who play ball.
As for the comments above, amazing. Is there a word for Stockholm-syndrome structural racism? Give me a break, from what is described in this post, it appears Rock just shined on the entire movement. Too bad he didn't use that oftentimes brilliant mind to take much deeper jabs at white Hollywood, and by extension, fans.
This is a poor and biased commentary about a person who had an entire monologue written, practiced and ready to go.... and changed it in order to reflect the situation.
His job is a COMEDIAN! He doesn't work on CNN or MSNBC, he's supposed to toe the line just as Eddie Murphy, Richard Prior, Jamie Foxx, Adam Sandler, etc. do in their routines.
Jada Pinkett came to defend her husband, who wasn't nominated for a sub-par role with an awful accent. Rock was pointing out the fact that if not for will, she had no ties to the Oscars this year, which is true.
He jumped in talking directly about the lack of diversity and how he wouldn't have gotten the job to host (no mention). He mentions his thoughts of quitting, realizing that all that will do is remove his ability to use the Oscars as a platform (no mention). He cracks jokes on Kevin Hart (no mention). He talks about how black people haven't been nominated for the Oscars several years and talks about how no one cared about insignificant award shows (truth), and said that people were busy focusing on other important things (maybe that was a shot to say that the Oscars aren't as important as the issues happening in the world that should be focused on?). He highlighted the fact that black people are being killed by cops (he said on the way to the movies... clearly stating that they were innocent in matters... but framed in a manner that didn't make everyone uncomfortable). He talked about how the Awards are divided and gender based and stated how there really is no point in dividing (no mention, but you said something about sexism in there). He calls Hollywood racist (no mention). He talks about how black people just want opportunities, he brought up the name of the person winning Best Actor, Leo DiCaprio, as talks about how he gets roles that could go to blacks (no mention). He highlights Jamie Foxx, giving credit for a win but not the follow-up after Ray (no mention). Why were none of the positive things highlighted during your hate-filled "article"?
Again, he's a comedian. He's not up there to talk about minimum wage and political candidates and give social commentary. Were some jokes off-color? Yes. I thought the grandma and the Ray Charles jokes were in poor taste, but I've watched comedians perform before and realize its in their job descriptions to sometimes toe the line. Lighten up and stop spewing hatred, especially when there are plenty of positive points in the monologue.
Peace,
C Reese
First off I'm so sick of people using the tag COMEDIAN as if that gives the person being a fool a free pass, it doesn't!! Chris Rock is a stupid, buffoonish, cooning, jucking and shiving IDIOT who I have never found funny. Please, the only reason they hired him is because they knew he was going to speak in a way that made white people comfortable and happy. He has been a childish, moronic little brat for some time with little to no substance in his words whatsoever!! And if he's such a damn COMEDIAN he should have kept his mouth shut and kept it moving, why comment at all only to be incredibly stupid. Furthermore he's supposed to be a COMEDIAN then he's also supposed to be F-U-N-N-Y Chris has built his entire act on being foolish and annoying so spare me.
I disagree wholeheartedly. Chris Rock said and did EXACTLY what needed to be done Oscar Sunday. I only wish that the Black figurehead of AMPAS doesn't feel as if it's a victory for Black people because the Hollywood aristocracy was made to squirm a bit... They got off light. Our next step as Black people needs to be the boycott of films and production houses that refuse to cast with diversity. I'm disappointed with the tone of the article, you sound like you have a lot of Stacy Dash in you. It always seem like those in control find their perfect ethnic mouthpiece to go against EVERYTHING that a majority of Blacks agree with... almost like a misinformation campaign. I'm not buying it!
dear Ms. Solomon: first of all, i know in many ways this is none of my business, as i am not black, so let me just say this as a writer... Ms.Solomon you are clearly a very serious minded person and it seems to me the fact that black lives don't legally matter is so distressing to you that you cannot hear the irony which is the essence of Mr.Rock's comedic voice
in short, you cannot seriously refute things that everyone clearly knows are not LITERALLY true... the title of your article should be "i don't get it"
as a serious-minded person myself, who is deeply and continually hurt by the injustice in the world, i greatly admire Chris Rock for doing what he does best... making people laugh. you see, he isn't you... he was NOT there to make a speech and the fact that he did the right thing and talked about civil rights alone is enough to applaud the content of his character but it just so happens that his performance was a work of comic genius and i'll tell you why
some of those people were laughing because they were proud of him, they were delighted that instead of boycotting, he got up there and said "this is what's up," and his point of view is funny because he's not lying... and that doesn't mean that it was true! it means they knew what he meant... he was talking to Kevin Hart not to you, he was talking to Whoopee, he was talking to Hollywood, those were the people he had to make laugh
at the same time he made a good point, he was saying that to boycott an award ceremony is meaningless because nobody there actually cared if anyone didn't go for whatever reason. and he's right, an actual boycott as an act of civil disobedience is an effective tool because it destroys the economic stability of a power elite like the grape boycott which gave the migrant farmworkers a voice in their working conditions,
And Chris Rock wasn't just speaking to his friends, he stood up and spoke at those who needed to be spoken to about what needed to be said, not what you would have said in one of your speeches. the fact that you used your status, prestige and power to publish the voice of your disapproval should put you in sympathy with someone who is just as successful at doing the same thing, it's a style difference.
i remember my first meeting with a professor of writing, he said "if you tell the truth, then it is good writing. When it is well written too, then it is literature." So like, i'm reading Jane Austen at age 14, and it isn't at all funny to me, i read it straight but then, years later i read it again and it's LOL every other page. i was young. i was serious-minded. it was comedy. i just didn't see. and why is it so funny? because she is so good at telling the truth.
Comedy is by-far, by-far the most difficulty writing there is. Name-dropping Rihanna was just making an analogy, gossip is something people relate to, it was funny. Insiders in Hollywood know that this is actually a reference to the fact that even Paul McCartney and Beck could not get into Tyga's party. It's an "inside joke."
ANYWAY so Chris Rock was not there to make you laugh, he had to make Hollywood laugh. Like all comedians, he was handing the world of viewers a view of his life, from his point of view. do you think the truth might be funny because we hear so little of it? and is it possible that you've had too much of it? that you've lost your objectivity because you've had it up to here...
When comedy is your livelihood, then truth is too, because refreshing honesty is how to make people Laugh... all of the tv audience were just spies, tuned into a spy camera, watching the elitists be elitists... the people he had to make laugh were the elitists themselves, in real Life, and he did it with honesty, not factually but ironically
and as an AsianAmerican, i can tell you that there is also shit going down on social media about how horrible it was to use children to insult Asians and Jews by calling them more intelligent than other people... so you see ... some people can't even take a compliment from a black man. Activists have got their work cut out for them. Serious mindedness plays an important part in confronting injustice but sense of humor is necessary too.
now i am reminded of the black women who got kicked off the train for laughing too much. Someone called the police to report laughter. can we feel pity for this sad incident. there are sad sad people who don't have someone to laugh with, and haven't had someone to laugh with for so long that they don't remember how. Those people. They think it is an injustice that others can be enjoying themselves in public. What a luxury it is to Laugh. Laughter has so many notes, it sings when it giggles and it shouts when it is caught off guard. It is a universal language. I could digress about the music of laughter at length here but my professor taught me better.
so think, what you're really mad about is dishonesty. the truth doesn't seem to matter legally, 10 witnesses can be told they didn't see what they saw, the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, except if you're black... so am i telling you that you did not see what you saw?
maybe. in my opinion, we must never NEVER criticize someone for being real as it's the dishonesty that is killing us
Maybe it is painful and humiliating to watch because those feelings are always with you and it makes you feel vulnerable and exposed to have a black man courageously and with no apology tell you honestly what his Life is like. Is it another black life that doesn't matter? You see, this is how they get away with it, discounting the testimony of someone who is just telling it like it is. It has to stop. Discounting Chris Rock is the same shit.
They will keep telling you you're waving the bloody t-shirt, that you're enjoying your "victimhood," that they get to tell you that you're not really hurt, that your child deserved to die, that while the whole world has watched it on videotape, you did not see what you saw. Truth is: Honesty matters. Like my professor told me, that's what makes us great, writers and as human beings.
so no it sure does not feel great to be reminded that your career is not easy but just remember it is definitely worthy, however you get your point across.
Honest my ass!! Chris is a bug-eyed modern Stepin Fetchit cooning for white people, he lives in Hollywhite with spoiled, RACIST, rich white pigs that treat black people like shit. They love Chris because he is their pet house Negro who dances for massah and never questions the status quo. FUCK CHRIS!!
Well said. Yes excellent writer, I totally agree that there is a difference in laughing "with" us & laughing "at" us. Chris Rock-coon failed epically. I'm not only ashamed of his monologue; but am so sadly disappointed and hurt. Will and Jada Smith...much respect! Well written article. ~
I thought it was just me. I didn't know exactly how to express my disdain for his monologue until I read this article. He was caustic in his approach but he usually is in his comedy. Ironically I never thought he was funny but just bitched and yelled in his standup routines. If Ricky Gervais performed this same monologue there would be an intensity of hell raised that Satan would be shocked, but it's acceptable for Chris to do it?! No...Wake the f@$&! up people. You will never ever never hear Steven Spielberg tell a haulocaust joke or even lightly bash his people in the public eye. This also goes for Robert Deniro, Whoopi Goldberg, and Aziz Ansari. There are passive aggressive racist people I know who thought his monologue was terrible. Wake up people! As a whole we have taken so much from behind with a lead pipe on fire that even ridicule (please don't call it comedy) has become a form of entertainment.
I don;t share the author's opinion of Mr. Rock's monologue, but hey I am a privileged white middle class straight guy. I am sure Mr. Solomon earned his opinion through his life experience, and I am glad I got a chance to read them. I think Rock was mainly saying "lighten the F up" about some silly movie awards. Rather than his bits pandering to white folks, when the camera panned the audience during his monologue and some of his later comments, you could the discomfort among many of them. AT least it gets people talking and maybe helps get all people from the whole spectrum of our diverse population fair and equal representation in films, media and our society as a whole. (good luck on that) Any nation that has a certain megalomaniacal con artist as a viable presidential candidate may be beyond redemption.
This pretty much summarizes everything I felt and thought throughout the monologue. Thank you for taking the time to point out the blatant anti-blackness, misogyny, and overall dismissive attitude of Rocks rhetoric.
oh god cry me a river
Standing ovation....this was so spot on that I feel like there should be a video of you reading this that could go viral. Comedians for years have been given the green light to go be funny and make people laugh but there is a time and place for having a good time and being satirical but this was not that time. The attack on Jada to the grandmother hanging from the tree are sketched in my memory. I wish there had been a way to boooo those comments and force Rock back on course. He is no doubt a talented brother but his characterization of others who stood in opposition of the show was low and divisive.
Seriously, this article is little, like your opinion of it. Chris Rock was great and you are acting like a little white kid who has been bullied at recess. Black movies have been crap for years. The best black movie this year did not make the cut. Too bad for NWA, but they are not whining like Jada, who has not HAD a good movie that I can recall, period. Great point to end this comment.
I'm seeing a lot of heat on Chris Rock, and he did write his own material; but no-one has yet mentioned David Hill and Reggie Hudlin. Rock did not work in a vacuum. He had editors, production approval- a whole raft of upper echelon management agreement to sign off on all of this - including the racist as f*ck asian children skit. So- just wonder who was okay with all this before it got to the screen first.
Honestly, people should already know the politics of Academy Awards never included us to begin with. In fact, as he pointed out, its been like that for 88 years. The Oscars are exclusive, omitting deserving actors and actresses and filmmakers at every turn (Paul Giamatti comes to mind, as Rock had said). With all the resources people of color have, just keep making films and let the numbers (and accolades) do the talking. Fyi Hollywood making white Egyptians is nothing new. When an artist the media stated was self-hating put black Egyptians (King of Pop) , it was lost on alot of folks. Wheres the stories of the powerful kingdoms in other parts of Africa? Egypt isn't the only one. That's what happens. We don't like politics so we protest to change the rules instead of just focusing on changing the game. The bus boycott is an example. Instead of seeking acceptance, change and modify the landscape so that nothing can deny you.
This article.... Just no. Off the mark. Did you try and study this? You are reaching. Stop. It was a comedic monologue at an awards show, about a 2 on a scale to 10. Its not the state of the union address. Pick up what he was putting down. He had to represent and he did.
I created an account just to say. F your opinion on the matter. Chris rock is a comedian and his job was too entertain and not protest right or wrong. F you and your hate. *deletes account*
Your comments are addressing parts of his dialogue that were clearly tongue and cheek and meant as a joke. He's a comedian dagnabit!.....we KNOW hat Jada can get into the Oscars but the boycotting Rhianna's panties line was hilarious. I believe that Chris's humor allowed him drive home really important points and to go really deep and touch the psyche and and souls of the audience and viewers. They were truly squirming and captivated at the same time.
Akiba sounds a little bitter. There were only 2 decent "Black" movies this year, yes 2. They did not make it. Jada Smith is a lousy actress who has had crap for movies and her husband has not had a decent movie in years. His recent one really was not very well acted and the accent was a bad joke. This is probably why he sat silently while his wife went over a verbal cliff. There are so many important things that she could lend her voice to, like maybe overuse of collagen in ones cheeks, or redistributing your wealth to the less fortunate if your are rich. Chris tried to make light of a negative situation and her turning the channel probably worked out great for her. I thought the show as a whole, was great. Want some black movies to win? How about putting some black movies OUT there so that they can be in the running?
get over yourself. it was awesome
"Never bite the hand of the one who feeds you". So I understand Chris Rock's lack/loss of cojones. But yes I was disappointed in him. I am fed up with people so concerned with the "white" feelings but don't give a damn about black feelings. "It was more digestible", please!!!! It was insulting (yes, I am African but not American thank God). To see a a black man trying to be creamy to this white group of people and make sure they can take a joke is sickening. Black History since meeting the non-melanin species is not a joke to me. People suffered/died and to this day are suffering and dying of racism (sickness of the white), "but please get over it Black people". I really start to think that the lack of melanin equals a lack of empathy/humanity.
Preach Akiba! I never watch the Oscars. Not only is it extremely boring, but it rarely honors anyone who looks like me or celebrates work that I enjoy. Nonetheless, I was excited to tune in and see Chris "give it to them." I actually watched in primetime because of the controversy, eagerly anticipating his opening monologue.
Boy was I disappointed. I find Rock's comedy edgy and intelligent. I don't even mind when he crosses a line or two in the name of satire. But, to attack the boycotters, and say that we have nothing to complain about today was outrageous.
In fact, it was stupid. But, Chris Rock isn't stupid. He looked like a man dressed up in a white tux selling his voice to the highest bidder. It didn't sound like him at all. And, his absolute worst sin...he wasn't even funny.
Chris Rock is often very funny. But CHRIS ROCK'S POLITICAL CONSCIOUSNESS HAS ALWAYS BEEN *UNEVEN*. Uneven and lacking true depth in a way that Richard Pryor, even Eddie Murphy, and other Black satire icons of comedy never were in their stand-up comedy, going back to and before Moms Mabley. (Pryor could have been a famous Black academic sociologist and author had he been born and raised under much more positive circumstances.)
In the 21st century, Black people -- Americans -- don't have currently performing Black stand-up comedians with any consistent depth anymore. Like, Chris saying that Black people are complaining about the Oscars because they have 'no real problems' and nothing else to complain about these days. i guess that he's not actually participating in, or contributing to, let along knowledgeable about, the Black Lives Movement.
The lack of any Black/Brown/Asian nominations in the *15th* & *16th* year of the *21st* century is yet *another* national manifestation of the problem that to white institutions Black/Brown/Asians lives, including our intellectual, political, literary and artistic contributions to American society (even though Black people have been the greatest popular creative force, indeed a 20th & 21st century *global* force, in this country), just don't matter -- just like Black people don't matter to killer cops (and, yes, poor & working-class) Asians get abused, even killed, by the cops too). Yet, CHRIS ROCK PREVIOUSLY DID A COMEDY ROUTINE THAT COULD HAVE BEEN PUT OUT BY THE POLICE THEMSELVES! See, Youtube: *Chris Rock* -- "How Not To Get Your Ass Kicked By The Police" -- filled with heavy Black stereotypes and excuses for killer cops to *kill* Black and Brown people. How would you uncritical, starstruck, diehard Chris Rock fans who read and/or post comments at the pages of a sociopolitically *conscious* journal explain that!? I.e., unless you *support* the murderous excuses for killer cops that Chris Rock makes.
And while institutional and even white *liberal* racism continues to be the problem of the psychological nature that no less than Martin Luther King pointed out in his "Letter From A Birmingham Jail", sexist denigration (sexist sexual humor and even distorted verbal attacks against concerned Black women) from people like Chris Rock (a rich *Black* man) is *also* a continuing problem in this world of even the 16th year of the 21st century, unfortunately including from certain Black icons. Yes, I thought that many of Chris Rocks jokes were socially very funny -- but I certainly very sharply winced at others of his jokes. It's because Chris Rock has no consistent social depth and consciousness -- like too many other comparatively "young generation" Black stand-up comedians today. And, unfortunately, that's what I've learned to expect from Chris Rock's humor.
Joseph from Berkeley
So are you saying that blacks and Asians are the only races getting shot by cops? Really? You may want to investigate that further,in order to have a clear view of reality. All these people here are either blinded by hate or foolish. How can you possibly, rationally think that blacks corner the market on discrimination? ?? Wow! I must have been dreaming when those little black kids at camp called me honky? Was I dreaming when those 2 black girls spit on me? Or how bout the several instances when Co workers called me cracker and other disparaging remarks? I suppose when I was beaten at my front door by a neighbor, yes black, It was hallucinations ? My point is that hate and racism resides in the hearts of alllll people to varying degrees. Not just white people but all people and that includes blacks!!!
Re "Lori Edens": Ohhh, geee, we have a white person who feels that white people are *so* misunderstood, and as a group have it *so* bad, in the history of America -- and probably that it was *white* people who got a raw deal in America.
Re: "So are you saying that blacks and Asians are the only races getting shot by cops? Really?"
'Uh-huh'... Uh, "Lori", why don't you find and quote the *exact* sentence or phrase where I supposedly said that?
*Warning*!! Typical white come-back...: "All these people here [critics of the Academy Award institution and of some of Chris Rocks Oscar comments, and author of the above commentary] are either blinded by hate or foolish." I'll just let this comment show itself for what it is.
Now, "Lori", in your list of grievances did you ever get beaten, torture tasered or shot by the cops because you were white? Did you ever point out how it is white women that have been used as the centerpiece of American racism? -- since and before the movie "Birth of a Nation" (which you probably don't even know anything about). Have you ever pointed out how many *white* women -- often hiding behind their gender -- have perpetrated acts of racism that not only affect Black, Brown & Asian people's economic well-being, but that can threaten Black men's very lives? Have you ever pointed out the, especially, often white female racism against, especially, but not only, Asian girls/women, as well as against Asian males?: in fact, I've heard it first-hand semi-regularly.
And while I wouldn't support any physical attacks on you, if what you said that happened to you is even true and not made up (because I don't personally know *any* white girls/women that has happened to in my entire life, not that white kids/adults might not ever face resentment from some Black kids/adults for the system of privilege and *multiple* breaks and 2nd chances that white kids/adults repeatedly get), maybe there was a *REASON* you were called "honky" and "cracker" by those Black kids/people.
Re "Lori Edens":
All the crazy passive-aggressive racist white girls and women (including those who call themselves [white] "feminists", which means their thus hypocritically complaining about their *own* social oppression at the hands of white men, including several white female former grade school teachers of mine [at a private school, no less], and a couple of white women former bosses of mine [has your job ever been threatened/lost because you were *white* and even *surpassingly* competent?], including a white *handicapped* woman boss in a *wheel* chair, but not to handicapped to be racist) -- those alonnne in numbers who *have* been, or *would* be, an institutionally racial threat to my life or livelihood, their passive-aggressively hiding behind their race and *gender*.
I should have hated *ALLL* white people A *LONGGG* TIME AGO -- but I *DON'T*! I've known of white girls/women in weekly/bimonthly psychological *therapy* over a lllot *less* (although I don't support *unfair* verbal attacks on anyone).
Except, one thing...: I won't work for ordinary white people anymore because they expect, *especially*, an intelligent, dignified, and even highly competent Black person -- the kind that (as W.E.B. DuBois once pointed out) threaten most white people the most -- to trade in Black *dignity* for a job. This, like the Oscar Academy and all those "good" white liberals in the Oscar audience were pleased to have Chris Rock diss concerned Black voices with a rightful grievance in the first place. I've never seen so many Black people, used for Academy cover, giving out so many Awards *NOT* to any Black, Brown, or Asian American people who *weren't* getting any Awards.
That's telling her whiny ass!! Thank you
I find what he did to confirm and find truth in why he doesn't have a large black following. Over the years, I have heard a lot of black people, including me, state they do not like him due to him making fun of his own people to make white people happy and laugh. I'm not knocking him for doing what is good for him and his career. I'm knocking him for doing it at a time when it is completely inappropriate. This is a real issue, and I find it kind of out of place to attack and make fun of the people who are speaking out about the issue.
If we believe there is racism within the oscars why can't we have our own awards to recognize people of colour and their achievements? Why do we have to lie down and beg to be included? Does it seem too much like segregation? Too backward? Possibly, but what other alternative is there other than begging for inclusion? I don't believe we can be respected without respecting ourselves first and that means providing for ourselves, recognizing our own achievements - stuff everyone else. They will include us when they see the achievements we recognize of ourselves. That's just my opinion, take it or leave it.
The Oscars are shit anyway. Hollywhite has been going downhill for years on top of that they have NO problem with nominating and celebrating wife-beaters and pedophiles the Oscars can go suck a big fat dick!