The new trailer for upcoming Netflix series Dear White People depicts a woman of color radio host as she calls out white people for donning Black face at Halloween parties. Now, some Netflix users are "so offended" by the new show that they are calling for a boycott of the streaming platform as a whole.
Cool, I'll help you pack. I really don't want to discuss season 2 of Stranger Things with a bunch of bigots, anyway.
Fortunately, Dear White People's creator Justin Simien is taking the so-called boycott in stride. Simien, who also wrote and directed the 2014 film of the same name, told ET Online he's perfectly content with the drama surrounding his new show. He jokes:
“It just brought more attention to the series. Thanks, white supremacists, you really helped me promote my show... I’m a little grateful, I guess, to the insanity."
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Dear White people: boycott Netflix and their anti-White propaganda.
— Boatsinker (@Clausfarre143) February 9, 2017
Anyone who has seen the film version of Dear White People knows that it's not "anti-white." In fact, it's not even really for white people. The film is about several Black students as they navigate life in an Ivy League school and decide what being Black means to them. The movie discusses racial identity, the microaggressions Black people face ("Can I touch your hair?") and why things like "Black face costumes" are so incredibly effed up.
Alas, it's a lot easier to cancel your Netflix account than admit you might have some racial bias. That's a shame, because while the show might make some people uncomfortable, it's also pretty important that we listen when people of color call us out on our bullshit — bullshit that includes dressing up like Kanye West.