Against my better judgment, I watched the MTV VMAs last night. The event hosted some crazy outfits, weak performances, bad jokes, and shade; and some great moments like Big Sean’s acceptance speech and Tori Kelly’s incredible performance were absolute gems (Tori was actually my sole reason for watching the show). However, I was not even an hour into the show before I was astounded by the level of blatant disrespect.
Seven specific things cast a cloud over the show. Here they are:
1. Miley Cyrus’ Dreadlocks
Miley sported blonde dreadlocks during the VMAs. I would not be surprised if mainstream media credits her with introducing a new hair trend, maybe calling it “hipster hair locks.” After crediting Miley for inventing twerking, anything is possible.
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| Getty Images |
Miley’s hairdo is an example of cultural appropriation. Blacks with dreadlocks are often looked at negatively, but whites with dreadlocks are often looked at as cool. When Zendaya sported dreadlocks at the Oscars, Giuliana Rancic said it made her “feel like she smells like patchouli . . . or weed”; however I am 99.9% sure that people have said and will say that Miley’s dreadlocks made her look earthy or fashionable. I’m not saying that whites, including Miley, are not allowed to have dreadlocks. One of the problems articulated in cultural appropriation is mocking another culture for something then doing the same thing. Another problem is when people see two cultures doing the same thing and judge them differently. Cultural appropriation is a deep subject, one that I cannot fully explain in this particular post.
She may or may not have meant any offense by it, but Miley’s hair set the tone for the show we were about to see.
2. Rebel Wilson’s Mockery of Police Brutality
MTV was quick to remind us that mainstream media love black culture but not black people or issues. Rebel Wilson walked out in a police uniform to present the Best Rap Video VMA. “I know a lot of people have problems with the police,” she said, “but I really hate police strippers.”
So she dresses up like a police to introduce best hip hop video? And then tries to downplay it by talking about police strippers? I’m done.
— Jode-Leigh (@bottled_blonde) August 31, 2015
— Pulley (@Pants_So_Short) August 31, 2015
After taking off the uniform to display a “F— The Stripper Police” t-shirt, Wilson shared a story about hiring a stripper police for her grandmother’s birthday. The stripper would not feel up Wilson’s grandmother and gave her a short back massage. “I hate this injustice,” she said, mocking this country’s issues with police brutality and, dare I say, the #BlackLivesMatter movement.
Mock the Black Lives Matter Movement before presenting Best Rap Video. I see you white supremacy. I see you. #VMAs
— zellie (@zellieimani) August 31, 2015
3. LAPD Spelled Out on Ouija Board at Miley’s Rapper Sleepover
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| Not today, Satan. |
I’m saved, so I’m not even going into this one. I’m about to have prayer meeting, so you can look that up for yourself.
4. Iggy Azalea performing with Demi Lovato
As long as she keeps on with that fake blaccent of hers, I’m not interested. But God bless.
5. Miley calling Snoop her “Real Mammy”
Edit: After re-watching the clip, I realized that Miley was actually thanking her real Mammy (grandmother), Snoop Dogg, and her pet pig – not calling Snoop her Mammy. So forget this one.
In one of Miley’s skits, she ate weed brownies with Snoop Dogg. Snoop said that Miley’s grandmother, Mammy, made the brownies with him. After Miley came out of a hallucination that reinforced my decision to never try drugs, Miley told the audience to “give it up for my real Mammy, Snoop.”
WAIT A MINUTE. Did Miley just call Snoop her MAMMY??!! #VMAs
— Makiah Green (@makiahisms) August 31, 2015
Mammy, the most well-known racial caricature of black women, was created during the American slavery era. Mammy is a Southern archetype for a black woman who happily worked as a domestic servant and/or nanny in a white family that nursed the family’s children. She is often portrayed as an overweight, loud, and very dark-skinned woman with a bandana, perpetuating the idea that white men did not find black women attractive. Mammy’s happy character was used to show that black slave women were content with being slaves, thereby “justifying” the practice of slavery.
The word “mammy” is a variant of “mother,” used in many English dialects as such; and though Miley probably calls her grandmother “Mammy” in real life and MAYBE meant nothing by giving that name to Snoop Dogg, it added salt to the wound.
6. The White Squad Commercial
We could not even catch a break during the break. MTV aired this commerical:
I found out after the show that “White Squad” is a satire by MTV’s “Look Different” anti-bias campaign that tackles racial inequality that privileges whites and discriminates against people of color. In retrospect, I think the satire did a good job articulating some aspects of white privilege. Most people however, including myself, did not know that at the time; and not knowing, combined with the bull we witnessed for over an hour, made people believe that MTV was mocking systematic racism. Needless to say, the timing of that commercial could have been better.
7. Miley Endorsing Donald Trump
This was really the last bloody straw. Kanye West gave a convoluted, but eventually meaningful, acceptance speech upon receiving the Vanguard Award and, at the end, announced his run for presidency
Miley continued the political talk by saying, “Trump, you had my vote, but now, Kanye West for preseident!” Now, she might have been joking, and maybe she wasn’t; but the fact that she would even find it funny to endorse a candidate flaunting racism, bigotry, xenophobia, and misogyny is beyond me.
“trump you had my vote”
no miley don’t even joke about that
— Jackie. (@ghostofclifford) August 31, 2015
Did I miss anything? Please let me know.
MTV, we are not amused. I hope a show like last night’s never happens again, but I cannot be confident that it will not. Here’s to hoping and fighting for a better future.
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