Are You Really That Surprised?
Very sad. But in a way, it makes perfect sense.
Seeing Michael Richards have his racial meltdown in the Laugh Factory, and then make things worse on Letterman was, to me, a case of chickens coming home to roost.
Don’t get me wrong: I love “Seinfeld,” adore Kramer’s character, and think that Michael Richards is a comedic genius.
But I harbor no illusions: The construct for “Seinfeld,” like so many other comic teleplays and films, is a monochromatic world where White People are central, and people of color — if they appear at all — are simply used as accessories, as added “color” for a scene.
When you think about “Seinfeld,” and you realize the only recurring Black characters were either there because they made our white heroes uncomfortable simply by being Black (like George’s nemesis Mr. Morgan at the Yankees); or to parody a Black celebrity (like Kramer’s erstwhile lawyer Jackie Chiles doing his best Johnnie Cochran), you get a peek inside the archaic white psyche. It’s a headspace where white people simply do not know how to deal with a world that is slowly become not their own. So they literally ignore it. “Seinfeld” is Ralph Ellison’s argument made visual.
Many of my friends live in this space. Many of your friends do too. They’re the white friends who giggle when hip-hop comes on, rather than bob their heads to it. It’s not that we can’t be friends with them. It’s just that we choose to live multiculturally and they don’t... either because they don’t know how, don’t want to, don’t have to, or they are afraid to.
When white folks are brought out of this space, they can have a number of reactions. Some take kindly to reality. Others snap.
I’m sure that Michael Richards doesn’t believe he is a racist. I’m sure, on an intellectual level, believes in equal rights for all. But we never find the truth until we get cornered. When Black folks are pushing his buttons, Richards’ response, apparently, is to tell Black people they have no right to push his buttons because they’re Black. That is the very definition of deep-seated, latent racism. Sorry.
Jerry Seinfeld’s reaction was encouraging. He still loves his friend, but made no excuses for him. Still, it’s a bit hypocritical: Seinfeld was the guy who created and reveled in that whitebread world. I live on the Upper West Side. (Ok, the Upper, Upper West Side). If I suddenly woke up one day and walked out into Seinfeld’s all-white fiction, I’d have to shoot myself.
I’d like to think about this someday as the death-knell for that kind of anachronism: Woody Allen, “Seinfeld,” “Friends.” Goodbye, goodbye, goodbye. You had your day. Even Larry David, to a certain degree, left that monochromatic world when he graduated to “Curb.” Perhaps this will be a turning point to more multicultural, more race-conscious humor. That humor certainly is more uncomfortable for white people, less safe: from Chris Rock to Bernie Mack to Borat. But it’s humor that’s transformative because it has reality on its side.
posted by Dan Charnas at 8:02 PM
20 Comments:
it sounded to me like Michael Richards seemed to be coming somewhere near the same conclusions you did in his apology. it wasn't a heavily choreographed press conference with all his black friends, it was a bare moment where he seemed as perplexed by it as he was embarassed. and he also seemed interested in getting to the bottom of his own issues. it wasn't "I love black people, and here's some black people who love me." it was "holy shit, maybe I don't love black people...wtf????" what else could he have done/
Your argument is interesting, but Seinfeld is not Michael Richards's creation. He was simply a good physical comedian who played a role written by Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David and had nothing to do with the creation of that neurotic white-goy/white-Jew fictional world.
Richards was just a bit player -- which is why, as his heckler noted, he's been totally unable to succeed at anything post-Seinfeld.
The analysis of Seinfeld's bizarre handling (or avoidance) of race in a wonderfully diverse city is interesting, but I just can't make the leap from Michael Richards's acting gig to his racist outburst.
The comment about recurring Black characters is interesting because when I heard about this incident, I tried to think of episodes on Seinfeld that involved Black characters. I think the point the original post makes is valid.
It’s just that we choose to live multiculturally and they don’t... either because they don’t know how, don’t want to, don’t have to, or they are afraid t
On what levels are you choosing to live multiculturally? In my opinion, most people (of all different backgrounds) would prefer not to live multiculturally, it's just that it might be easier for white people to do so.
Seinfeld was the guy who created and reveled in that whitebread world.
I understand what you are saying, but don't you think most comedians do the same thing regarding their respective worlds? A comedian makes a living talking about his or her experiences (often stereotypical), whether that person is fat, rich, poor, divorced, white or black.
In a sense, it sounds as if you are faulting Seinfeld for growing up among white Jewish people and creating a show that centers around this world. Personally, I think the best humor is the kind that appeals to the widest range of people, so I would welcome the multicultural humor that you mention
The reality is that some white people don't have Black friends or experiences with Black people, and vice versa. I think that in some cases, that is by choice, but others it is not.
The entire whole complete point of Seinfeld (the show) was to mock the whitebread world by, among other things, making interactions with minorities completely ludicrous and base. Did you understand that was the point of the show? Criticizing it as unrealistic is like saying Chevy Chase was racist for wearing a Klan outfit in Fletch 2. You are missing the point. Seinfeld was making fun of the upper west/east/whatever side world that whites live in.
Looking at Richards' actions in light of the world of Seinfeld is interesting and could have led to an interesting discussion.
Attempting to make a causal connection between the two is ridiculous and somewhat irresponsible if all you've got is what you've presented.
Clyde -- What's so ridiculous about it? The fictional world of "Seinfeld" is not only a creature of Seinfeld and Larry David's minds, but a collective effort of all the writers and actors who participate. Yes Kramer is a fiction and Richards is real. But I'll put money on the thought that the insular world that Richards has build for himself -- both real and psychic -- is every bit as white as the world on "Seinfeld."
And we as viewers, are only too willing to indulge in that dream, the dream of a world without people of color. I'm not saying it's a malignant dream. I'm saying that it's largely avoidance behavior on the part of white people. This doesn't mean that participating in the "Seinfeld" world (either creating it or watching it) creates behavior like the kind we saw in Richards the other day. But it's a world that can HIDE MANY, MANY things. IN that world, those deep seated beliefs can lay dormant.
Even in a neighborhood like the UWS... people can see what they want to see. There are people who live on 101st and Riverside in the lap of luxury, and not give a second thought to the thousands of people who live in the projects just two blocks away.
But in New York, you have to do a lot of squinting to block out Black folks. New York has always been a city that forces us to look at and be with other people. Los Angeles, on the other hand, makes that process of denial exponentially easier.
Anyway, I'm making kind of a subtle point here, not trying to say the "Seinfeld" series caused anything. Like all things, symbolism and reality have a synchronistic relationship.
Very well articulated commentary and I fully agree with your arguments. Racism is not necessarily expressed thorough openly discriminatory policies or violent acts such as lynching anymore. Racism exists as an emotion within the dominant race as a form of self-image where a white person strongly believes that everything around them and in fact the rest of the world has been defined, created or managed by them either directly or indirectly through colonialism. Lot of them also truly believe that they have worked hard to create this world and even the idea of demonizing racism for civil right purpose or for political correctness is due to their magnanimity. Any situation or incident that violates that sense of superiority or seeks to put a white person in any kind of discomfort gives them the right to revoke the privileges given to the non-white person for either given the right to live equally in a white world or losing the respect given to them under the garb of political correctness or human rights.
Those "whitebread" shows you mention are actually all produced by jewish people.
Do a little research and you'll find that racism is at the very heart of their religion.
Their religion states that they are only to marry other jews by birth and that only marraiges to jews by birth count because others aren't real people, only animals.
All their public noise to the contrary is just a sham.
Let you think I'm picking on them, fundamentalist Hindus believe the same.
Dan & Suresh >>
EXCELLENT!
Both of you said exactly what I would've liked to...and as so, there isn't anything better that I could add to that pot.
I'm hoping that this unfortunate but possibly preordained-by-a-higher-authority incident will spark some much-needed reflections of use of that damned n-bomb on all sides of the fence...but I'm not holding my breath.
Seinfeld could have easily been black people. Elaine was a hoe who had a lot of guys. You only saw her father once, never saw her mother. George always lied, jumped from job to job, and lived with his parents. He was always scheming and told woman anything. Kramer was a pimp who didnt work but somehow always had women. He mooched off of Jerry. His mother was a drunk and for awhile you never knew his real name. And Jerry had the flyest women and his hustle was comedy.
No one should be surprised because all white people are capable of being racist. Those niggas in the audience should have beat his ass to death. Go to youtube and see what Paul Mooney had to say
Dan my friend, i weary of having to comment on the obvious...nevertheless,P.E. said it best; the "Fear of a Black Planet" has always been in effect. The lengths that white folks will go to deny their racist impluses never ceases to amaze...
The racist white youth of the 50's that opposed intergration are the senior citizens of the present day...why are we surprised?
To whomever was cowardly enough to post anonymously: I believe your comments are out of line. True, those shows are produced by Jewish people, but I don’t think anyone can make the argument that the shows themselves are racist, they merely portray a predominately white world. Making the jump to state that racism “is at the very heart of” the Jewish religion in not only unfounded, it is false. Certainly, Jews discourage inter-marriage, but you would be hard-pressed to find a religion that accepts inter-marriage without conversion, a point you half-heartedly acknowledged when mentioning fundamentalist Hindus. All religions divide us. But to single-out Jews is uncalled for. In fact, if you did your research you might have learned that Jewish Americans were very active in the American Civil Right Movement. They gave financial support and physically participated in marches, sit-ins and freedom rides. So perhaps you should not judge Jews by their so-called “public noise,” but by their actions.
clearly Seinfeld is a parody of the world is presents. Also, do you expect the writers and producers to accurately portray a world they don't know? You would probably call it racist because the black characters would be acting unrealistically.
What about the Cosby show? Or Fresh Prince (both great shows)? I can't think of any white reoccurring characters with any serious connections to any of the characters besides serving a point for plot, or characterization. The point is that our worlds ARE different, and true multiculturalism is a relatively new idea that obviously has its bumps. It's new territory for everyone.
"Fear of a black planet" is somewhat bunk, because wouldn't black people put into the same position as white people, do the same thing? It's assuming that all minorities want to live in this racially equal, harmonious world, which is something any decent white person would say. Making it a reality isn't easy, and likely never will be. Don't blame Seinfeld for not making it's goal to strive for this, its a friggin sit com.
" "Fear of a black planet" is somewhat bunk, because wouldn't black people put into the same position as white people, do the same thing?" -- That's what fear of a black means.
It is ridiculous to make the leap from Seinfeld to Michael Richards' racist remarks. I would like to second illest's comments. I'll say also that everyone in the United States is a racist. Some are willing to admit it, some will deny it with vehemence, some prefer to call others racist. What does everyone think of the fact that the television coverage of Michael Richards's outburst consistently censored the word "nigger" but made no effort to censor "cracker" or "cracker ass". Each is a racist term, but racism leveled at whites was deemed acceptable by the national news media. It's too late in the game to be handing out free passes. I don't have a username or password, but you can contact me at gregopvuur@aol.com.
According to the 2000 US census, the US population’s racial diversity by percentage is: 12% Black, 70% White, 13.3% Hispanic, 3.6% Asian, 1% Native, 0.1% Pacific Islander and ONLY 2.4% who identify themselves as multi-racial (this adds up to 102.4%-!?).
Census projections to the year 2060 show growth for all races except Whites who decline to 40% while Hispanics become the second largest at 38%. We are headed for relative parity in a multi-racial demographic, who it will “belong to” is anyone’s guess.
But does diversity translate into a multi-cultural society? I doubt it. Today we are neither a multi-cultural or multi-racial society in the broadest sense. We celebrate our ancestral past more than we embrace multi-cultural identity other than lip service from politicians around election time.
So back to BOTH rants. Richards’ was uncalled for, hateful and offensive, he will pay for it for a long time, as he should. But as many people have responded to the “Are You Really That Surprised?” blog, I think Dan Charnas has projected an alienating perspective with disturbing overtones.
No need to project a “death-knell” for Woody Allen, Larry David, Seinfeld or Friends. C’mon - urban neurotic middle-class white and Jewish humor is both funny and self-deprecatory. And by all means bring on the “less safe” humor pioneered by Richard Prior and Lenny Bruce. As far as making white people uncomfortable, that is not necessarily a benchmark of quality – I can assure you EVERYTHING will get some white people dangerously cranky somewhere. All humor can be healing and transformative OR corrosive and divisive. “Reality” for ethnic diverse groups is... well, quite diverse.
I wistfully remember ‘60s AM radio. On any one station I could hear: American Pop & Rock’n’Roll, Motown & Stax Soul and R&B, British Invasion, Novelty, Country and Folk recordings ALL mixed up together all day long. That was the closest we’ve come to a multi-cultural experience in pop culture to date.
I was art director of the East Village Eye in Manhattan in the early ‘80s when Patti Astor’s Fun Gallery first exposed Hip Hop, Break-Dancing and Graffiti Art to an appreciative downtown white audience. I prefer old school rap and well... old school rock as well, but don’t judge me if I don’t bob my head to most rap (or rock) today, I’m not “multi-culturally challenged’ and I’m not giggling – I just don’t think most of it is any good.
peace,
Flick Ford
janine,
"Fear of a Black Planet" somewhat bunk?...You negate a present-day reality by invoking a "possibility" of how you THINK Black people will behave??????
Black folks have never responded proportionally to the terror that white society has heaped upon us through the generations. White folks fear of what black people MIGHT do is the fuel that powers their racist impulses today...
janine re 11/29... my thoughts exactly. as i scrolled down to the "comment" option, you saved me the time.
it's their fear of what people might rightly do in return that fuels racism. on the other hand, i might add that it is also the fear of knowing there isn't shit you CAN do that fosters resentment.
People get outraged over things like this because it's inconsequential and doesnt change anything about economics.
That said, I'm pretty sure Seinfeld's best friend is Mario Joyner and his best man was George Wallace.
The comedian, not the Governor of Alabama.
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