Why Mo’Nique shouldn’t have won the Oscar

The first thing you see when you type the words “Why are” in the Google search engine. Apparently it is a popular search term. Wonder why??!?

My Facebook status on Monday morning read as follows:

Nikita is glad Mo’Nique won the Oscar but is wondering why recently Black actors always win for negative/degrading/ghetto/stereotypical roles, e.g. Denzel (thug), Halle (depraved) and the best song Oscar for Hustle and Flow’s “It’s hard out here for a pimp”. Man, I really miss the Cosby show. Positive images of Black folks in Hollywood are severly lacking.

Now, normally I refrain from getting preachy or political in my Facebook status updates, but this just had to be said. Living in Hong Kong, far removed from much of North American pop culture (I wasn’t even able to watch the Oscars and had to rely on internet articles and other people’s FB statuses for details), I just had to vent to people who would have at least an inkling of what I was talking about, and that sure as hell was not going to happen in Hong Kong. I was looking for other people’s opinions, views, and feedback surrounding what surely can be viewed as a controversial/contentious issue.

Let me preface my statements by saying that I saw the film “Precious” (specifically went last weekend before the Oscar broadcast so I could figure out what all the “buzz” was about) and don’t want to discount any of those involved. Great performances all around. I’m glad that a sista got some recognition and won an Oscar. But. I’m not impressed about the role she was rewarded for.

So I still have beef. While Mo’Nique acted convincingly, that role was not a stretch for her (peep her stand-up comedy act and her film resume). Mo’Nique has made a living from acting ghetto for a laugh and reinforcing stereotypes (see “Soul Plane” and “Skinny Bitch” ). She is big, Black, loud, and unapologetic. That’s just her schtick. But. But, but, but.

Anyway, I was not disappointed with regards to feedback to my status. Within a few hours my Facebook page had blown up with 20 or so comments and 10 or so “likes”. Many of my Facebook friends, mostly Black, lamented the lack of positive characterization/representation of Blacks in Hollywood. Because what it boils down to, the reason I’m so distressed with Mo’Nique’s win, is this: Why we always gotta be the gangbangers? The whores and crackheads? The ones suffering from tragedy and strife in the ghetto? Why do we always speak poorly? Look bad? Sing, dance, and play sports? Where is the diversity of film roles and representation that is present in the Caucasian acting community?

Mo’Nique’s portrayal of a chain-smoking, wig-wearing, poor-taste having, disgusting, boorish, and abusive mother is NOT representative of the typical Black experience, or of our people. Just as Gabourey Sidibe’s portrayal of an obese, sexually abused, two-kids-by-the-age-of-sixteen girl (who at one point steals a bucket of fried chicken and runs off and eats it until she vomits onscreen) is not typical. I know that. Black people know that. Some other people know that. But what of people who don’t see how far from reality these portrayals are? And, if they are being constantly bombarded with these sorts of images (that they ultimately consume) can we really blame them for believing that?

An anecdote: A few weekends ago I went to a friend’s birthday dinner and met a man (Black) who owns a bar here in Hong Kong. He was seated next to me and we got to talking. Inevitably, the conversation turned to race/being Black in Hong Kong. He has lived in Hong Kong for 12 years and says that in the early years, if you were Black in HK (and especially in mainland China) people would look at you as though you had two heads. We started talking about funny incidents that happen WBB (“While Being Black”) out in Asia and he said that he once went to a session of business meetings with a potential client in Northern China where the English level was very poor. During a break between sessions, Black dude found himself sitting down across from a Chinese lady who worked at the company. Due to her poor level of English, they mostly smiled at one another and suffered an uncomfortable silence. That is, until Chinese lady said, “I like your people’s skin. I like niggers. Niggers very beautiful”. !!! Imagine my friend’s shock. Of course, Chinese lady had absolutely no idea about her poor word choice, and was trying to be nice. Of course, she had heard the word on TV and film. It’s a wonder that she didn’t ask my friend about his dancing, rapping, or basketball skills (only half joking). The point of this story is that our representation, the way in which we are shown/portrayed/celebrated MATTERS. This rampant and continued stereotyping and type-casting has got to stop.

I posted this on Facebook a little later:

These award shows really shouldn’t be important (some of the people who have won and are constantly celebrated for their acting really suck in my opinion, e.g. Julia Roberts, Renee Zellweger, Nicole Kidman). But most people still think they are. And if winning equates to validation in the acting world they underscore how little “official” recognition very talented Black actors get (Hello Angela Bassett!), and even if they DO win, the fact that they typically win in mostly supporting roles for mostly stereotypical portrayals (the singing, smiling sambo Black, the thug, the singer/musician, the athlete). Or some epic, heavy, important historical role/biopic that the Academy feels the actor should win for (i.e. Whitaker, and Don Cheadle/Will Smith even though they didn’t win)… And what about the sistas? When will they snag and win for a lead role like Julia Roberts did for something like “Erin Brokovich”?


When will change come?