Al Sharpton Calls Blacks Who Don’t Like Tyler Perry ‘Proper Negroes’…Really?
You may think that Al Sharpton is giving a compliment by saying this, on the contrary it is anything but something nice. Sharpton honored Tyler Perry at his National Action Network event Wednesday night and called haters of Perry, “proper negroes.”
“This man never apologized for who we were…The ultimate pride is where you don’t have to bend and adjust for others to accept you. … He didn’t go mainstream, he brought mainstream to us.”
It is no secret that many Blacks don’t particularly care for Perry’s movies, plays and television shows. One well known proponent of Perry’s work is Spike Lee. His forms of entertainment have been referred to as “coonery” and just as offensive as the black face minstrel shows.
When Perry went up to accept his award, he had this to say about all of his nay sayers:
“When you start out and you’re doing things and you’re trying to do the right things, and you find these attacks happening, and you try and figure out, ‘How do you handle this? How do you deal with this? How do you go there?’ So to have someone like you who has done all that you have done … and have inspired and encouraged and fought for so many people, to stand here and to give me this award, this is really, really awesome…”
“I stayed with who we are, and what I wish I could get us to understand as a people is that instead of getting your education and running from us, you need to ground and root yourself in who we are. Every other culture in this country knows the value of us as black people but we don’t know it ourselves,”
“Somebody said to me about the ‘House of Payne,’ ‘Why do you have fat black people on television?’ Because there are fat black people in the world. It’s not a stereotype. This is who we are, we need to stop running from our parents and our grandparents and our uncles, we need to stop running from them and embrace them.”
“I have the ear of the people, and I would be a fool to walk away from the gift that God has given me because somebody out there, a few people out there, have a problem with it.”
Well there you have it. Everyone has the right to their own opinion. If someone doesn’t like a particular form of entertainment that doesn’t mean they are wrong. It seems that Sharpton is saying that those who don’t support Perry are “uppidty.” What do you think?
This is where ALL naysayers should STOP COMPLAINING and START CONTRIBUTING.
I’m not mad at Perry at all. No, I can’t relate to his films but I’m not going to act like I’ve never met/experienced any of the characters he displays on film. I can count at least 10 “Madeas” that I’ve met in my lifetime, crazy uncles. and fat black people? Are we really going to act like everyone in the hood is in shape? Eating right?
He is calling it like he sees it and if the “uppity” crew have a problem, then blame the REAL life characters as well as the showgoers who support and enjoy them. My mom is far from uneducated but she loves her some Madea and so did I when they were just plays before mainstream.
At ease folks!
“No, I can’t relate to his films but I’m not going to act like I’ve never met/experienced any of the characters he displays on film. I can count at least 10 “Madeas” that I’ve met in my lifetime, crazy uncles. and fat black people? Are we really going to act like everyone in the hood is in shape? Eating right?”
Excellent point!
By no means is this man trying to say that his characters are completely reflective of every single black person on the planet! But I dont think its a stretch to say that MANY of us have at least 1 or 2 family members, friends, neighbors etc who greatly resemble some of TP’s characters. I’ve even heard numerous people of other races say that some of his characters remind them of their own family & friends.
But on the other hand if it doesnt resonate with you or your family members, friends, neighbors etc thats fine too. Why take offense? I dont understand that!
Al is so irrelevant. So irrelevant. The perm man just focus on the perm
This statement really bothers me:
“I stayed with who we are, and what I wish I could get us to understand as a people is that instead of getting your education and running from us, you need to ground and root yourself in who we are. Every other culture in this country knows the value of us as black people but we don’t know it ourselves,”
If he doesn’t even know that what he presents is not “who we are,” then I don’t even know what to say about him. What he presents is his own interpretation of who we are (just like plenty of other filmmakers)…it just so happens that his interpretation of “who we are” is loaded with generalizations, stereotypes and unnecessary melodrama. Don’t get me wrong, it’s okay to make films with all of that in them, but to try to claim that what you are presenting is “who we are” is a bit of a stretch. It’s a poor argument and a foolish statement for him to make. It would be wise for him to be a bit more responsible with his words when describing what it is…then, maybe people wouldn’t respond in certain ways. Sometimes, I wonder if Tyler Perry has ever actually sat down and watched films that are considered by many people to be good work. And I’m not just talking about black films, either.
Tyler Perry reminds me of one of those people who lucked up and got chosen to be on Project Runway, only to discover that they are just a dressmaker, but not a true designer. It’s okay to be a dressmaker, especially if you are successful at it. But when people point out that you are not a designer (because they feel that your work lacks innovation, creativity and appealing style), either accept it and move on or respect the craft and do what it takes to become a designer.
Brilliant.
I feel like his movies portray exactly this same sentiment. That black people who are educated can’t relate to the place they come from and think that they are better than the people in the hood. Just because a person gets an education and tries to do better does not mean that they are running from where they came from. It means that they may want and like different things. I don’t have a problem with the actors and actresses being overweight and even preachy. But the fact that the characters are so one dimensional is the problem, they have no depth. And also, many of the actors have came from stage acting. Because the crowd is set far away from the actors they movements and acting can be more melodramatic to get the point across. However, when you go to tv acting and on screen, it takes a different type of acting to come across natural. I wonder if the actors took acting classes would Tyler Perry object to them getting more education.
Love this comment! I don’t have a problem with Perry per se but I don’t think he is the beacon of the black experience in America so he does need to watch his words carefully. Nor should he expect every one to love his work black, white or otherwise. Personally, I think he is a much better suited for theater than films, because his movies don’t leave a lot to be desired.
Nothing quite like Project Runway comparison to bring your point home. Well done!
‘“I stayed with who we are, and what I wish I could get us to understand as a people is that instead of getting your education and running from us, you need to ground and root yourself in who we are. ”
Bullshit! I hightail away from that ignorant bullshit. This man is evil and he needs to be stopped.
YEP! AL is defending him because thats who AL IS!
Awe, people, it’s just comedy. That’s how I see it. I don’t take it that seriously. Actually, I don’t take his stuff seriously at all. It’s slapstick humor to me. I get a good laugh and I move on. It doesn’t affect or represent my life, I don’t ponder on it, and once the credits start rolling, I’ve pretty much forgotten about it. Everyone has a right to their opinion, though and I respect that. Actually, I don’t enjoy everything he puts out, but I don’t see the man and his work as a detriment to the whole African American race either, which seems to be the sentiment I am hearing from many.
THANK YOU!!! Amen and amen again!
Its really not that serious! I sincerely dont understand why people cant just see it for what it is, COMEDY! Have a few laughs and keep it moving.