‘Dear Culture’ unpacks the new Black Hollywood
As our nation rises to demand justice for Black lives, the Dear Culture podcast is wondering what Hollywood has to say about the changing tides
Like so many industries, Hollywood has been hard with the coronavirus pandemic. Productions came to a screeching halt, pushing some shows and films to delay release dates and others to release digitally. In the midst of the public health crisis, the Black community has been facing another epidemic on racial grounds with the passing of Ahmaud Arbery and George Floyd.
As our nation rises to demand justice for Black lives, the Dear Culture podcast is wondering what Hollywood has to say about the changing tides. This week with theGrio’s Senior Writer Blue Telusma and Entertainment Director Cortney Wills, we’re asking “Dear Culture, what’s the new role of Black Hollywood?”
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Black folks in Tinseltown are not absolved from navigating the community’s social and health crisis. Telusma reminds us that when it comes to “activism, do not assume what a celebrity is doing or not doing.” Sometimes the public wants to know each detail of a Black celebrity’s life, but the truth is many of us may never know what one is doing behind the scenes. From legislative meetings to boardrooms, Wills reminds us that activism isn’t for show.
“You have to be careful of celebrities that want too much attention for their activism. It begs the question of ‘Is this sincere or performative?’” notes Telusma.
We’ve gotten to a space where we’ve seen so much performative activism “that we don’t recognize that real activism is a lot more dirtier and not Instagram ready.” On the other hand, you have the case of celebrities who don’t know how to “shut up,” jokes Wills. From Kanye West to Terry Crews, “sometimes [it’s best] to just sit down and be quiet,” says the hosts.
“The Chappelle’s Show was groundbreaking because conversations we usually had privately in the Black community and he was bringing it up on front street and having it with everybody. When all the stuff happened with George Floyd, he decided to sit still and listen rather than take the stage,” marks Telusma.
We can’t expect celebrities to speak up when they don’t take time to listen. It’s also important to note that not every celebrity will apologize to their lack of paying attention like Chance the Rapper ultimately did. Sometimes when celebrities run the wrong hill, the public may not get an apology.
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As Cortney interviewed a swathe of Black actors (Simone Missick, Tiffany Boone, Kimberly Hebert, Sterling K. Brown, Kiki Layne, Gina Prince-Bythewood, Kelvin Harrison) the pressure to rise to the occasion and stay true to extending conservations on liberation is what’s on the mind of community members on the inside of fame and media.
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