Saturday night, I took to binge-watching the Netflix series Dear White People. I thought the show was absolutely genius and far from discriminatory, as many unknowing naysayers proclaimed due to assumptions based off the title. Set on an Ivy League college campus, the same story is portrayed and repeated from each unique characters' perspective. Although many obvious themes are displayed, the series touches on the inevitability of being negatively stereotyped while black in America, regardless of prestige or advancement.
Riddled with blatant discrimination, cries of reverse racism and police brutality the prestigious Winchester University acts as the perfect microcosm of the black experience in America. The predominantly white campus houses only a handful of black students. Despite colored people being the minority on campus, there is a lack of strength in numbers. The students and faculty of color are divided by subgroups which consist of the “woke” revolutionists, the financially privileged blacks, and the consciously clueless.
Sam White, the extremely “woke” biracial beauty acts as the leader of the revolution. Her dorm is decorated with the presence of black activists that came before her. She speaks her truth over the airways of her Winchester Radio Show called “Dear White People.” The name and premise of the set is the cause of white tears spilling all over campus. Feathers are ruffled after white students decide to throw a blackface-themed party in response to Sam’s liberal show. Sam expresses her disgust for the students involved and wants more to be done from an administrative standpoint.
Troy Fairbanks takes on a different stance opposed to Sam. He represents the "privileged" blacks. He depicts the externally well off person of color. He is educated, wealthy and has social clout among the affluent influential whites investors due to his father’s position as the dean. Although Troy is aware of the injustice, he is kept quiet by his controlling father who is pressed by hidden motives.
Troy's father, Dean Fairbanks acts completely oblivious to the social injustices experienced on campus. He falls in the category of being consciously clueless, or completely aware of the issues but consciously choosing to ignore them. He rather stay quiet as speaking out would affect his personal gains and reputation. He also feels a sense of superiority due to his rich white connections. He uses his son as a puppet to demonstrate that not all blacks fall into the category of rowdy protester, but have the ability to "assimilate" to the standards of the white wealthy aristocrats. His stance is possibly a result of wanting to maintain his status in such a prestigious environment. When the students of color sought his power to speak out against campus police after pulling a gun on a black student for refusing to show I.D., he sticks to his position as dean and approaches the situation by the book with little to no remorse. He forces Troy to run for president of the student body, but urges him to focus his campaign on every issue under the sun as long as it isn't regarding race relations and white privilege. He has a strong disliking for Sam and her rebellious in your face antics, he feels her behavior brings down the quality of the university.
Coco, the beautiful black Barbie also falls in the category of the consciously clueless. Although deemed as "not woke" by her revolutionary counterparts, she is completely aware of the issues and horrid race relations on campus. Due to her dark complexion, she is well aware of her blackness and the negativity that surrounded her growing up. Coco differs from Sam, who was unaware of race until later on in childhood. She chooses to turn a blind eye, as taking a stance could hurt her future of being the next black female president. She too, like Troy, is also used as a pawn to appease the dean's affluent white social circle. Despite the uppity rich girl persona she portrays, she comes from the poverty stricken inner city. She witnessed the results of racism and police brutality on a daily basis, she is aware that woke-ness will not spare a person of color from becoming a target.
The catalyst of the series occurs when Troy is arrested by campus police after vandalizing school property out of frustration. The young man begins to resist arrest while cuffed. In the mist of the scuffle, the officer reaches for his gun but is interrupted by the screams of Dean Fairbanks. "That's my son," he yells in fear. While Troy is being taken away by police, the dean turns to Sam and asks for her assurance that Troy will be all right. She assures him that he will.
Although Troy was the epitome of prestige and wealth, he was nothing but a black man to the cops. Even before his run in with the law, he was seen as more of a pawn than a person along with Coco for straying from the stereotypical norm. Sam's relentless determination to stand up against discrimination forced her in the role of angry black woman. Regardless of what stance blacks decide to take, whether to be academically advanced, woke, or just oblivious our often negative perception — can sadly be the same due to a not so colorblind America.
