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Sharon Wil
Kyrie Smith
Ric Williams
Kevin Gourrier Sr.
Michael Brooks
Sharon Wil
Ric Williams
Ric Williams
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Viola Davis on Colorism in Hollywood: ‘If You Are Darker Than a Paper Bag, Then You Are Not Sexy, You Are Not a Woman’
Davis says that this is what makes her character on How to Get Away With Murder that much more unprecedented.
Actress Viola Davis attends the Los Angeles Times’ Envelope screening of How to Get Away With Murder at ArcLight Sherman Oaks May 26, 2015, in Sherman Oaks, Calif.
Alberto E. Rodriguez
When you see a chocolate-complexioned actress on TV in a complex and
sexualized role, clap for that woman and whoever cast her, Viola Davis
argues, because dark-brown women have to contend with the colorism
hurdle just to land quality roles, the Academy Award nominee revealed
during an interview with The Wrap.
"The paper-bag test is still very much alive and kicking," Davis said plainly.
Hollywood simply does not view dark-brown actresses as women who are desirable by men, she says.
"That's the whole racial aspect of colorism: If you are darker than a
paper bag, then you are not sexy, you are not a woman, you shouldn't be
in the realm of anything that men should desire," Davis explained.
And that, she argues, is what makes her character on How to Get Away With Murder, Annalise Keating, that much more powerful, historic and shocking.
"And in the history of television and even in film, I've never seen a
character like Annalise Keating played by someone who looks like me. My
age, my hue, my sex," Davis said. "She is a woman who absolutely
culminates the full spectrum of humanity: our askew sexuality, our askew
maternal instincts. She's all of that, and she's a dark-skin black
woman."
Davis says that Keating has no predecessors when it comes to
portraying a chocolate-complexioned woman with all of the different
layers that make women, well, women. Instead, dark-brown actresses are
usually typecast as demeaning characters in society.
"But I encourage you to search your memory and think of anyone who's
done this," she said. "It just hasn't happened. I hear these stories
from friends of mine who are dark-skin actresses who are always being
seen as crack addicts and prostitutes."
For more of black Twitter, check out The Chatterati on The Root.
Diana Ozemebhoya Eromosele is a staff writer at The Root and the founder and executive producer of Lectures to Beats, a Web series that features video interviews with scarily insightful people. Follow Lectures to Beats on Facebook and Twitter.
Comments
We have to support black genre that support us.....reality is..if we
don't support and create those role who will create them for us.....She
is working with a talented sista she need to tap into that position and
start directing....too
IF WE STICK TOGETHER AND STOP SUPPORTING NETWORKS, AND ENTERTAINERS WHO
FEEL THIS WAY THEN WE CAN HAVE MORE POWER!!! MONEY TALKS AND THE LOSS
OF SUPPORT WILL BE FELT!!! AND BLK MEN ENTERTAINERS DONT MAKE IT ANY
BETTER WHEN THEY HAVE A PLATFORM 2 SPEAK AGAINST THIS THEY DO NOTHING
You
black women have yourselves to Blame, period!! You simply don't have
any unity, well Unity that counts for something anyway. We hear
constantly, Black women are doing well here, doing brilliant there. Not
only in the workplace, but in all areas.
Yet what do they do with this power, absolutely nothing!! They allow themselves to be.
Denigrated in the media
Characters portrayed as ratchet sisters
Scripts where love interests are High colour, and the criminal element dark skinned.
YOU BLACK WOMEN ALLOW THIS!!
You live in America Not ( TV State run) communist China, NOT ONE OF THESE NETWORKS CAN SURVIVE WITHOUT ADVERTISING REVENUE - Use your power - You can have 1 message go viral ( 5 million Views) in 5 hours in today's society using social media.
You mean to tell me NOT 1 of these high flying sisters can't organize something, whereby you collectively speak to each network with your demands, and Whomever Agrees to those demands, gets the Support, in terms of purchasing Goods and Services advertised on that network. The rest will lose big time.
And I assure you of this, once they give this Network their support en-masse. The other networks ( due to loss of revenue) will have so many Dark Skinned women featured in all roles, they won't have the people to fill the roles.
BUT That won't happen because Black Women can't be bothered putting their energy into this. Easier to cosy up on the settee with a glass of wine to Real Housewives of Atlanta, or Orange is the New Black Bull @@it., at the same time, talking on the phone to a friend discussing how Wotless Black men are.
Yet what do they do with this power, absolutely nothing!! They allow themselves to be.
Denigrated in the media
Characters portrayed as ratchet sisters
Scripts where love interests are High colour, and the criminal element dark skinned.
YOU BLACK WOMEN ALLOW THIS!!
You live in America Not ( TV State run) communist China, NOT ONE OF THESE NETWORKS CAN SURVIVE WITHOUT ADVERTISING REVENUE - Use your power - You can have 1 message go viral ( 5 million Views) in 5 hours in today's society using social media.
You mean to tell me NOT 1 of these high flying sisters can't organize something, whereby you collectively speak to each network with your demands, and Whomever Agrees to those demands, gets the Support, in terms of purchasing Goods and Services advertised on that network. The rest will lose big time.
And I assure you of this, once they give this Network their support en-masse. The other networks ( due to loss of revenue) will have so many Dark Skinned women featured in all roles, they won't have the people to fill the roles.
BUT That won't happen because Black Women can't be bothered putting their energy into this. Easier to cosy up on the settee with a glass of wine to Real Housewives of Atlanta, or Orange is the New Black Bull @@it., at the same time, talking on the phone to a friend discussing how Wotless Black men are.
@Dave Mills
Excuse me but do you even watch American television? If you did you would notice a visible lack of Black presence on television. Maybe it's just me and I'm watching the wrong shows but the last time I saw Black woman in a bombshell/siren type role was in "Boardwalk Empire." Granted I'm sure I'm missing some shows "Gotham", "Empire", "Power" and "Sleepy Hallow" but that is pretty telling because while I haven't watched every show, I'm talking about broadcast television, cable and netflix. My point is that Black woman, as well as the the entire Black community, has been marginalized by the television industry.
Excuse me but do you even watch American television? If you did you would notice a visible lack of Black presence on television. Maybe it's just me and I'm watching the wrong shows but the last time I saw Black woman in a bombshell/siren type role was in "Boardwalk Empire." Granted I'm sure I'm missing some shows "Gotham", "Empire", "Power" and "Sleepy Hallow" but that is pretty telling because while I haven't watched every show, I'm talking about broadcast television, cable and netflix. My point is that Black woman, as well as the the entire Black community, has been marginalized by the television industry.
I am so tired of seeing our top black actors love interest in movies be
anyone but a black women. If it happens to be a black women she is
generally light skinned. I have not heard of any black actors speak on
this devastating issue.
@Tanisha Ross
What about black women in Hollywood? Their love interests are almost always white men. Especially, those light skinned, so called sistas.
What about black women in Hollywood? Their love interests are almost always white men. Especially, those light skinned, so called sistas.
@Tanisha Ross
Once upon a time, not at all long ago, black men would never have been
cast with a white woman. It was a huge leap of progress when this was
accepted in the media. Black women with a white man were accepted first.
Now, it's the time of the multiracial personality because that's still
less accepted by society than interracial couples. You attitudes only
confirm this.
I
am so tired of this discussion topic, and it seems like it is a
consistent question or discussion topic only when Hollyweird interviews
Viola Davis or the darker hued cast members from OITNB.
You forget, Black men marry outside their race 3 times more than black
women and more than other men of other races, (maybe that is oneeeee of
the reasons, there is an all war against black men) colorism is a issue
here in this country due to the white dominant culture, and white
supremacity
@Sharon Wil Maybe it's the fact that the population is 80% white? Has nothing to do with supremacy or colorism.
@Kyrie Smith @Sharon Wil
Eventually,
white supremacy will have less power and, influence. See Kyrie, the white birth rate is the lowest on the planet. Europe is worse than America as far as white birthrates. And, as long as the white man chooses to make mixed babies vs white babies, his status and, the white population overall will decrease. In 10 years, the white population on this planet will be on life support. Thanks Kyrie!!
Eventually,
white supremacy will have less power and, influence. See Kyrie, the white birth rate is the lowest on the planet. Europe is worse than America as far as white birthrates. And, as long as the white man chooses to make mixed babies vs white babies, his status and, the white population overall will decrease. In 10 years, the white population on this planet will be on life support. Thanks Kyrie!!
Colorism...here
we go again, with this divisive issue! Before we start arguing this ad
hominem...let's work on changing the standard of beauty, that
white/bright is better!
@Kevin Gourrier Sr.
Yep,here they go again....Now according to previous articles by "The
Root " maybe they can do a piece on the actresses in Hollywood who
despite being darker than a "brown paper bag" are in fact married
outside of their race...but still can't get the roles they seek just the
same... I find this entire piece extremely amusing and comical.
@Michael Brooks @Kevin Gourrier Sr.
You forget, Black men marry outside their race 3 times more than black
women and more than other men of other races, (maybe that is oneeeee of
the reasons, there is an all war against black men) colorism is a issue
here in this country due to the white dominant culture, and white
supremacity
@Sharon Wil @Michael Brooks @Kevin Gourrier Sr.
Look this up:
in America, the majority of Black married men are married to Black women.
Look this up:
in America, the majority of Black married men are married to Black women.
@Sharon Wil @Michael Brooks @Kevin Gourrier Sr.
Colorism is a power tool in this country and, whites know how to use it. 2 examples, Vin Diesel and, Maya Rudolph. 2 Hollywood types who try to hide their Blackness yet, not even Hollywood will claim them as white. Point, if whites classified all mixed people as white then, there would be no white supremacy because, whiteness would be powerless.
Colorism is a power tool in this country and, whites know how to use it. 2 examples, Vin Diesel and, Maya Rudolph. 2 Hollywood types who try to hide their Blackness yet, not even Hollywood will claim them as white. Point, if whites classified all mixed people as white then, there would be no white supremacy because, whiteness would be powerless.
