I'm sure most of y'all were fans of the Dave Chappelle show on Comedy Central.
Dave's biting comedy about race and his outstanding hip-hop acts made the show must see TV for a lot of folks. He had a lot of classic shows with the most famous skit being his epic retelling of the relationship between Rick James and Charlie Murphy.
But, I consider his skit with Wayne Brady to be one of the most underrated performance by Dave, and one of the most impressive performances I've ever seen Wayne Brady give.
For those of y'all who weren't fans or have bad memories, Dave and Brady basically decide to hang out one night and do the town. Chappelle and Brady have a history because on several occasions Dave has lambasted Brady for being a cornball Negro who is more than willing to shuffle and jive for the white man. (Those of y'all who actually watched the Wayne Brady Show know what I'm talking about.)
Anyway, the pair decide to hang out and Chappelle discovers that Brady's saccharine demeanor is actually a facade, and Brady is actually a stone-cold thug who pimps, commits drive-bys and is basically just like Denzel Washington's character in Training Day.
I laughed so hard during this skit I damn near had to change my pants.
One of the highlights of the skit is when Chappelle and Brady pull up to a "track" where Brady has some prostitutes working. Brady hits his pimp horn and the women come by to drop off their cash. The only problem is one of the girls is fairly short. Brady then looks in the camera and says "Is Wayne Brady going to have to slap a hoe?" Classic.
Anyway, that skit was the first thing that popped into my head, when I read this article. which also was posted over at Jack and Jill Politics. Fox News apparently thinks it's ok to call Obama's wife his "baby's mama."
Seriously now, is Barack Obama going to have a slap a hoe?
I'm not talking about Michelle Malkin or the other woman who is featured in the segment discussing Michelle Obama. It's not even about them.
See, the point of the Wayne Brady skit, at least in my eyes, was Brady poking his tongue out at all the other comedians and regular black folks who had been questioning his manhood. See, singing show tunes and dancing the Carlton Banks two-step is not something that black folks generally consider "manly" or cool.
Brady was basically letting these folks know that they really don't know shit about him, that all the things they think make him a cornball could actually be the mask he wears for white folks so he can make his money. Wayne Brady could be a Hoover Crip and none of us would know about it if he decided to hide that part of his life. I think Brady was letting people know that they needed to respect him as a man. His conversation with the prostitute encapsulated that idea since he was reminding her that if she did not respect him as a man and produce some ducats there would be consequences.
Which brings me back to Barack Obama's pimp hand.
We all know Obama has avoided being labeled an Angry Negro like that shit is the plague. He sucked it up when Hillary came at him with both barrels, he did the same when the media attacked him on the most asinine topics and it appears he's taking the same path when it comes to conservatives. In fact, the only time Obama has let his cool and calm pose crumble is when folks have taken shots at his wife. He's let them know that type of behavior will not be tolerated, and while he didn't go into full-blown Angry Negro mode, he did let Slightly-Peeved Negro come out to play.
So, I'm wondering if this latest attack is going to bring the Bruce Banner out of Obama.
"You wouldn't like me when I get angry."
Personally, I would be fine with Obama getting medieval on the ass of Fox News and their rampant racism. As Charlie Murphy said, those bastards are habitual line-steppers; they cross the line so much we should just call them Scab News.
But, once you go angry black, I hear you can never go back. Even if Obama is fully justified in his anger, once he unleashes the Angry Negro that resides within him I wonder if he will ever be able to resume his current pose. After all, white people have a tendency to remember it when they get their asses handed to them by a black person and they then bring that incident up in perpetuity.
Obama still cannot afford to be branded a typical, angry black person because once that happens I believe huge portions of the electorate will write him off without compunction. It comes down to whether Obama thinks it's worth it to really engage Fox News for the disrespect they directed towards his wife, or if he would rather let the rest of us get in their asses.
I'm sure his pimp hand is quivering right now, but he might have to put it away.
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21 comments:
That skit was brilliant on so many levels.
I posted earlier about this baby mama b.s.
I know Barack would like to just go off on those fools but you're right. He can't.
I'm sure his pimp hand is quivering right now, but he might have to put it away.
MIGHT?
Sheeeeeit.
The Pimp hand is NEEEEEVER gonna be seen in polite company.
what i wouldn't GIVE to be a fly on the wall at Chez Obama and hear those two go back and forth about YT acting a fool.
Must See TV.
Now MICHELLE? I wouldnt be surprised in the least to see her get after someone POST election.
But Before...shes on her best behavior.
It was an outstanding skit, and Brady was brilliant! And Chappelle played the perfect, horrified straight man. Excellent acting all around!
And while I'm basically on the same as you, my interpretation is slightly different. I don't think Brady was trying to prove to Black people that they needed to respect him as a "man". I think Brady's too enlightened to believe that pimping and beating on women, even in a satirical skit, proves one's "manhood".
I think it was a straight up commentary on "Black-on-Black" stereotyping, and how quick we are to judge each other harshly. I think it was about how our narrow definition of what constitutes "true Blackness" has debased us to the point where manliness equals violence and degradation, even (or especially) against our own.
And let me not absolve myself of all guilt in this matter. I, too, prior to seeing that skit, harbored some less than charitable feelings against Brady as one of White America's favorite Black men.
And as for the Obama aspect, I totally agree.
Big Man,
I may have to break out my Chapelle show DVDs that skit and Black Bush are some of my favorites!!
The BM comment is crazy I asked WNG on her blog could we call Cindy McCain John's sideline ho excuse me, former sideline ho!
Obama is using his pimp hand cyberly and with dignity and grace by creating http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/fightthesmearshome/
I have to say he is ONE SMART Negro!!
-OG
If you get that list together let me know WNG so I can bit the bullet and joing the boycott. Field Negro might already have a list because I remember seeing a boycott plug on his site.
And Black Bush and the Wayne Brady skit do not get the respect they deserve. Everybody always talks about the Rick James skit, Black KKK skit and Meet the Niggars skit, but those aren't my favorites.
Black Bush, Wayne Brady, The Prince one and all the "When keeping it real goes wrong" skits are hilarious.
Oaktown girl
That's a good take on the skit and I agree with a lot of your points. I think they were making fun of those stereotypes, but I also think Brady was letting folks know that they were making assumptions about who he was and what he thought based on incomplete facts. I think that the skit was an over the top way of letting folks know that he wasn't a punk as well as making fun of black people's stereotypes about real blackness.
I will join the boycott w/no pblm. I don't watch Fox anyway, so sticking them, their sponsors and making their lives a living hell would be my pleasure.
I really enjoy reading this blog in the morning. You are doing a great job.
Fox sux!
Everyone one is waiting for him to go off so they can say told ya... they are all they same. But I have learned alot from Mr. Obama regarding temperment and how you have to pick your shots while weighing your decisions. Because you dont want to be an example of another one of my favorite skits on Dave's show "when keeping it real goes wrong"
Mr. Obama please dont keep it real! (joking)
Here is an excellent comment on Fox News' "Baby Momma" or "poor judgment" per their spokesperson.
http://scalzi.com/whatever/?p=870
Money quote:
"...It’s shit like this that makes this story on CNN, about whether Barack Obama should be considered black or biracial, an absolute hoot. Here’s a quick test on whether Obama should be considered fully black: Poof! Barack Obama has been magically transported to a KKK meeting in deepest, whitest Klanistan without his Secret Service detail. There’s a rope and a tree nearby. What happens to Obama? If you say, “why, Barack Obama walks out of there alive, of course” then sure, he’s biracial. Also, you’re a fucking idiot. To everybody who cares about Obama’s racial identity, either positively or negatively, the man is a black man, married to a black woman, who has black children. Black black black black black black black black.
It sure as hell matters to Fox News, which is why it’s dog whistling about Barack so loudly that it’s vibrating the windows. Calling Michelle Obama a “baby mama” isn’t just Fox News having a happy casual larf; it’s using urban slang to a) remind you the Obamas are black, b) belittle a woman of considerable personal accomplishment, and c) frame Barack Obama’s relationship to his wife and children in a way that insults him, minimizes his love for and commitment to his family, and reinforces stereotypes about black men..."
That thing about Obama's "blackness" is both hilarious and infuriating. Seriously, folks only bring up stuff like that when it's convienent.
DP
Pass the blog along to other folks and let them know about it. Every little bit helps.
Brady was letting folks know that they were making assumptions about who he was and what he thought based on incomplete facts.
Oh that goes without saying. I absolutely agree.
Mr. Scalzi's post on his blog "Whatever (see Anon's comment above) broke the "Baby Mama" thing down nicely. For a more in depth analysis of the media and racist dog whistles, everyone should read this great piece by Dave Neiwert.
To be Black in amerikkka is to deal with insults every f**king day of the year, even from those you have never offended. It's shit like this that allows me to entertain homicidal thoughts.
How is baby mama different from nappy headed hoe? when these words come from the mouth of white folks it is with racial hatered and malice.
Fox has reached a new low for their gutter journalism, if that was possible. For the MSM not to report on this and bring the proper outrage, shows their complicity with fox noise.
Where is all those hillary supporters who cried sexism, why are they not crying sexism and racism against Michelle?
BTW, let that pimp hand go, with swift brutal force, but direct it towards fox noise.
Just to put it out there--this was both sexism and racism combined. That's what Michelle's going to face all through this election (and through Obama's presidency). I hope she's ready. And even more, I hope we're ready. I'm with WNG on the boycott.
imhotep - yeah, see the link I just posted in my comment just above yours. It's all about the media's complicity.
And as far as attacks against Michelle Obama and the Hillary supporters who were crying "sexism" the loudest? From them, for the most part we can expect to hear the sound and fury of...crickets chirping.
Oaktown, right about now Michelle should retract or amend her statement about how proud she is of this evil empire of a country.
Love the turn of phrase "Slightly-Peeved Negro".
If Raving Black Lunatic ever becomes a super-hero, Slightly-Peeved Negro can be his sidekick.
--GG
Well, Cornell West told Obama wayyyyy back in 2007 that "he should always be true to himself."
I wrote a post the day after Obama disowned Jeremiah Wright that he threw out the baby with the bathwater because he had a prime opportunity to talk about real racial issues in this country. He had an audience and Jeremiah Wright single-handedly provided the opportunity to discuss intellectually that which is race in this country. Granted his National Press Club tongue-in-cheek somewhat devolved into Showtime at the Apollo and he thought, perhaps, because the gallery was in his corner, that somehow he was all good, he still brought up crucial issues that although many blacks cringed when he spoke, but the cringe was more because we were all worried about how white folk were going to interpret it.
I said all that to say that I lost some respect for Obama because he quickly assuaged the sensibilities of whites by not just getting rid of Wright, but also the issue of race. Think about it, he hasn't touched the issue since that day. Didn't even talk about it when he rescinded his membership at Trinity because of the Father Pfleger incident (even though in hindsight, Fr. Pfleger was dead on about his analysis of HRC).
My whole thing is that Obama needs to weigh his options, which is more important? The presidency or his integrity as a black man in this country.
"My whole thing is that Obama needs to weigh his options, which is more important? The presidency or his integrity as a black man in this country."
I agree 100%. That is a steep price to pay for entrance into the white house.
Barack will not allow himself to be seen in congregation with other black men. You will see him with a group of white men, but not with a group of brothers. He still got my vote, but you wonder!
"My whole thing is that Obama needs to weigh his options, which is more important? The presidency or his integrity as a black man in this country."
I agree 100%. That is a steep price to pay for entrance into the white house.
It's a reason why I haven't drunk Obama's kool-aid. It's also the reason the bros at Black Agenda Report has been the proverbial canary in the coalmine on this one regarding Obama.
My frustration is that he's going to be backed into a corner and forced to discuss race, and who knows what's going to come out of his mouth, short of disavowing every Black person he's ever known, as well as Mrs. O'Leary's cow that started the great Chicago Fire, the late Harold Washington, the 1919 Black Sox, and Chi-town ribs.
I think we are assuming that Obama is a black man they same way I'm a black man, or Imohotep is a black man or Uppity negro.
Obama has shown throughout this process that he is his own man, that he has his own internal compass and his own goals.
I too have been peeved that he didn't more fully discuss race, but then I realized that I was holding him to a higher standard than I have held any other politician. This man had just given one f the most dangerous political speeches ever, and I wanted him to do even more.
I agree with y'all that life is about maintaining integrity, but I think each individual decides for themselves what integrity means to them. I can't expect Obama to live by the exact same standards that I live by. I can't expecthim to deal with issues of race the way I would deal with them.
Obama has discussed the way he's been lumped in unfairly with any black person with a divergent view, but he's done it softly and without pointint out the inherent racism in that practice because he understands the game. Remember, he's playing the game on a level no other black person has ever attained, so it's all new ground.
progressive Liberal, I share some of your sentiments and concerns Regarding Sen. Obama, but I do have a problem with Black Agenda Report.
It's seems like BAR, while rasing some profound issues, loath to give Barack any love on any level. BAR have not addressed the rampant racism that Barack and Michelle have had to deal with. BAR did not vett hillary, and have not vetted mccain to the same degree that they have Barack.
To make matters worse, BAR endoursed Howard Dean in 04, but have not endorsed Barack. And they certainly have not endorsed Barack over McCain.
So, while I agree that BAR provide a valuable service in pointing out Barack's short comings especially as they relate to Black folks, I believe BAR could bring some balance to their reporting of Sen. Obama.
Barack will not allow himself to be seen in congregation with other black men. You will see him with a group of white men, but not with a group of brothers. He still got my vote, but you wonder!
____
Where is the proof?
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