Colin Kaepernick has caused an uproar on his latest episode in his new Netflix documentary. This uproar, was in response to his episode talking about how certain mainstream Black characters in old tv shows were “acceptable negroes” that made the white audience feel more comfortable watching them. This had me wondering, what is an “acceptable negro” and where do we see this definition take place in American culture?
These acceptable Blacks were normally a stereotype of wealth, articulated language and nerdy persons. Some people included Carlton Banks from the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air or Steve Urkel from Family Matters; two tv shows that I think did a good job of showing Black culture, intellect and family. Kap, in my opinion, misrepresented these characters and displayed his own lack of self-awareness by the mere mention of two men. He clearly did not understand them. His explanation was not only disgusting but kind of ironic if you notice how he is used and his current public image. I bet he’d never see it himself though.
The Acceptable Negro is this idea that only one type of Black person is acceptable to white people in American society. And this idea, shocking to many who were immediately outraged by Kap, is true. The idea of the Acceptable Negro is a real one. And this isn’t just by one political side either. There is a stereotype of what is acceptable for the Black American citizens and I will tell you what it is and why it is important when discussing race and politics.
For the left, an acceptable negro must be a gatekeeper for the DNC. They must love big government and agree that America is a bad country that needs to pay for its sins of the past by constantly atoning through fundamental changes in its structure. American whites must constantly be reminded by these particular Blacks about the trauma of slavery at every minute of every day. A respectable negro must embrace socialism and communism. They must speak in a way that keeps the oppressive nature of the negro in America in the forefront of thought and nothing else. These individuals must placate the white liberals need to play savior and embody the very stereotype of a victim regardless of how much success America has afforded them. Being accepted by the left one must degrade the Black woman in our mainstream music while pretending that only promiscuity is how she is to be empowered, that empowerment means being given a list of demands and coddle us from criticism. The acceptable negro to the left is to be a knee-bending baby that cannot get ahead without white people feeling guilty and black people feeling always in remembrance for past woes.
For the right, an acceptable negro must be one that does not embrace their race or show pride in it. One mustn’t see color when something is positive unless it benefits the Republican party. Other times, this acceptable negro can see Blackness in crime, negativity and violence. An acceptable Black person on the right must denounce their Blackness altogether or put it on the back burner to their conservatism. They mustn’t outwardly display pride in their Black culture with raised fists, wrapped hair or an afro, for those are just fashion and too much like Black. The acceptable negro has to be always on guard to defend the right from charges of racism but also fan the flames of such charges with ignoring actual systemic problems of abuse to the Black community by agents of the state. To the right, an acceptable negro has to be the Black face that racist whites use to get across talking points about fatherless homes, gun violence and sagging pants.
Understanding the idea of the acceptable negro allows you to see specifically how many of the elitist on both sides view Black people and how each tailors messages through that lens. And it has been difficult trying to get conservatives to see that this is what is repelling people from their side. The Democrats know what they are doing but believe that their noble causes are more important than how they treat Black people. Both sides forget often that Black people, while often a community, still have unique experiences, desires, goals and upbringing like everyone else. This “one way” of acceptance misses the point, that we are all individuals at the end of the day.
In actuality, Steve Urkel loved Laura Winslow and went on to marry her. He loved her family and engaged with them routinely. Urkel never made fun of anyone or the Black community. He was made fun of, but ultimately the heart of the show. He never belittled Black people at all. His nerdy nature was just as much apart of him as his Blackness was. As so, Carlton Blanks explained when he was trying to pledge for a fraternity that “Being Black isn’t what I am trying to be but who I am”. Carlton was best friends with cousin played by Will Smith and dated Black women as well. He like certain music and did certain dances that did not in anyway demean being Black. He didn’t see his skin color as a problem or something in his way.
Someone could say that Kaepernick’s constant wearing of an afro hairstyle, talking about being Black and showing up with more grievances is an attempt to prove his own sense of belonging. Kaepernick did this documentary for what exactly? No one was checking for him that I am aware of. If I had to guess, it was a part of a new grift that he is doing at the behest of white liberals. Whenever we need a new commentary on race, here he comes. This is the same man that could not recognize how bad it was to compare the NFL, an organization he still wanted to work for, to chattel slavery. How crazy!
I won’t deny, as I stated in this piece, that America has these stereotypes and even bully Black people who do not fit a mold. Many on the left will call you a sellout if you don’t vote how they wish and the right will call you a segregationist if you aren’t ashamed to be Black. But as an individual, neither side has ownership over my/our Blackness and gets to tell anyone if they are Black enough. What is that really anyway? It is nonsense.
The part about the acceptable negro was another attempt to keep the racial divide in America alive and well. While we haven’t eradicated racism, we have come a mighty long way. And if we do not start to see each other for more of who we are and by what we actually do, we will continue to have problems in America when comes to talking about race.
