In class on Tuesday, we talked about the line between
placating those who are on the wrong side of the racial hegemony in order to
maintain stability and actually changing the shape of the power structure in a
subversive or revolutionary way. I’m
interested in Omi and Winant and what their concept of hegemony might tell us
about white privilege and how it can and cannot be revealed and challenged. I
wanted to investigate this through comedy, because why not.
Here’s a clip of Louis C.K. talking about his daughter,
history, and white privilege.
It’s funny for a few reasons. First, Jay Leno doesn’t seem to know what to
do with him. He tries to change the
subject and it doesn’t work. The
audience is clearly laughing, but it’s one of those situations where Louis
C.K., in his usual style, is walking a line between making the audience laugh at truth
and making them uncomfortable.
Here, in contrast, is a video from Anderson Cooper with the
woman who made the “Shit Black Girls Say to White Girls” video, when that whole
trend exploded. Clips of Francesca’s
video can be seen in the first minute. It’s
a long segment, but to me the question at around 4:45 is the most
interesting. Francesca is constantly defending
herself against the charge of reverse-racism, and this particular questioner
seem furious and uncomfortable. It’s an
interesting exercise in understanding positions of power. What does it mean
that Francesca has to present things that are clearly racist as “ignorant” (as
if that’s better?) in order to avoid being attacked as a reverse racist? What nerve did she touch in her video that
Louis C.K. avoided?
Both of these comics are examining racism and its
byproducts. Louis C.K., as a white man,
clearly benefits from the power structure, so his interrogation of it is less
threatening. If he is calling his
audience out on their racism and their role in the oppression of others, then
he is also calling himself out. Francesca, as a black woman, differentiates
between herself and the white audience in her video, making clear the damage
that racism has done to her, not the damage that has been done by her.
Interestingly, the “Shit White Girls Say to Black Girls” now
has a series of links defending itself against charges of racism. Francesca even removed it from YouTube for a
while.
So, what do y’all think of this? How does the race (or gender?) of the comics
matter? Why?
As far as the differences between the two comic's access to political power, I think you are spot on. Louis C.K., not only white and male but also a famous comedian, has a considerable amount of social capital. He also has a history of handling socially sensitive issues, which makes his bit more comfortable and expected. (However, as you pointed out, Leno seemed extremely disconcerted.) Francesca, on the other hand, despite her youtube success, stands socially at the confluence of two marginalized groups--African American and Woman. She doesn't have the same social capital to fight back against criticism; also, these videos, if I'm not mistaken, are the extent of her exposure. She hasn't gained the same kind of leeway as a figure like Samuel L. Jackson probably would. Although Omi and Winant point to several types of "racisms," I think within our practical lexicon--meaning the terms we expect everyone outside of class to understand--her sketches cannot be considered "reverse" racism; again, she does not live in a power structure where her video stands as one part of a racist infrastructure. I will say though, and pardon me for not watching the whole clip, I haven't heard many of the comments that she spoke about. (Caveat, I don't probably hang around with the White girls she parodies in the clips.) I love the fact that she inverts the original Black Face Minstrelsy schema. Instead of white performers "mimicking" African-Americans, or Black performers performing "African-American," she performs the white role. I think this point is the most crucial; with that in mind, her sketches, which may be totally grounded in actual experience, probably hyperbolized or, perhaps, construct an amalgamation of all of the dumbest shit that white women have said to her. On that note, I can't imagine why people would get so offended. It is a joke. I think the problem with the Louis C.K. sketch is that he doesn't emphasize the fact that racism has been protracted into the present. It isn't just the history of racism that must be addressed, but the racist structures that remain standing.
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