It seems that every time we turn on our TVs or go on the Internet, Raven-Symoné has something racist, prejudiced or just plain dumb to say. Her most recent blunder involved her comments regarding the Spring Valley High School resource officer’s violent arrest of a young black girl in South Carolina. Rather than highlight the clear violence and blatant disregard for the black female body, she said on a segment of "The View": “The girl was told multiple times to get off the phone. “There’s no right or reason for him to be doing this type of harm — that’s ridiculous — but at the same time, you gotta follow the rules in school. First of all, why are there cellphones in school? This shouldn’t even be a problem to begin with, and he shouldn’t have been acting like that on top of it.”
She also made headlines Earlier this month when she sated that she wouldn't hire someone with a “ghetto” name like Watermelondrea. And let us not forget her rejection of being called “African American” on Oprah or her confusion of Africa as a country. Just a few years ago, we were all looking up to Raven as a role model and watching as her character, Raven Baxter, got herself into the most ridiculous situations while teaching our tween selves important life lessons. We can’t help but wonder where Raven-Symoné was for most of the filming of the show.
I mean, who could forget the infamous Black history month Episode entitled “True Colors” that celebrated the achievements of African Americans and addressed the issue of discriminatory and racist hiring practices. That episode revealed some harsh truths about racism in this country and taught us some very important lessons. Here are four of them.
Miss Symoné, listen up.
1. Discrimination is a real thing.
We all gasped in horror when we heard the manager of Sassez say explicitly into Chelsea’s video hat: “I don't hire black people.” This was one of the realest moments on the show because it presented a stark representation of racial discrimination. Raven-Symoné’s comments about not hiring someone with a “ghetto name” was so problematic because she was perpetuating this terrible practice that takes place across the nation. Too often, people are rejected from jobs that they are more than qualified for because of their name, race, ethnicity, gender, or creed. What is even more alarming is that such comments were coming from a person of color in the entertainment industry who has no doubt been exposed to racial discrimination in landing roles. It is important that we are aware of this very real issue, and unlike Raven, be a part of the solution and not the problem in combating it.
2. We should take pride in being African American.
Raven’s appearance on Oprah sparked a lot of backlash within the black community when she proclaimed: "I'm not an African American; I'm an American.” While there is something to be said about a rejection labels, it is important that we not be so quick to separate ourselves from such a rich history and culture of people. We all listened intently as Mr. Baxter taught Corey this very same lesson. ”You need to learn to appreciate it,” he said on the importance of celebrating the great black men and women who have made great contributions to this nation and to get us to where we are today. Corey later came to fully understand this when he said: “I didn't realize how many cool things came from our people.” Yes, Corey, our people are very cool and we should always be able to take pride in our identity and learn to celebrate our history and culture.
3. We should not be complacent in the face of injustice.
Raven was outraged when she learned that the manager discriminated against black people and she decided to do something about it. A huge reason why Raven-Symoné’s comments regarding the violent arrest of the black student was problematic was because rather than point out the very obvious wrongs of the situation at hand, she turned the conversation away and started speaking about cell phone use in the class room. Rather than use her platform and position for good and to organize change, she is constantly perpetuating discrimination and prejudice. In our society today, racism is still prevalent and encountered everyday and it does no one any good to avoid it. Raven Baxter understood the importance and urgency of combating such injustices—and so should we.
4. School is important.
Africa is a continent. Say it with me Raven: ‘Africa is a continent.’
Okay so maybe Raven Baxter was not always that best student. It seems like she did more dancing and going undercover than actual learning. I think we can all agree though, that you have to be pretty smart to think up all those great disguises.
We will be eternally grateful for all of the wisdom that Raven and her family bestowed upon us. Perhaps Raven-Symoné should have taken some of the same advice from her home girl before saying the ignorant and hurtful things that she did.
If only she could have seen this future for herself.
