On Black Women, Reality TV and the Monopoly on Violence

22 Apr On Black Women, Reality TV and the Monopoly on Violence

I’m not going to claim or accept a Black female monopoly on violence. Long before any housewife in Atlanta made a television debut, women of other races were engaging in violent acts on reality tv. The nature of this phenomenon rests in the culture of voyeurism, not the culture of Black womanhood. Reality shows are violent in many aspects. Very often the real damage to women participants lies beneath the bruises. The problem then, is not simply the portrayal of Black women on tv. The problem is the objectification of all women for the sake of entertainment.