I Don’t Do IgnoranceBreaking Down Shirley Q. Liquor, Big Mama, Norbit, Madea, and White Chicks

Drawing by Son of Ellis

The global image of the Black woman continues to be under attack, the latest of which being with Charles Knipp and his character Shirley Q. Liquor.  Liquor, is described by Charles Knipp as being "the Queen of Ignunce," who is based on his experiences with and interpretations of Black southern women.  Knipp, who is white and gay, performs the character --- an illiterate, welfare collecting, mother of 19 children, who drives a Caddy, and attends Mount Holy Olive Second Baptist Zion Church of God in Christ of Resurrected Latter-Days AME CME --- in blackface.

Men who take on roles as female characters for the purposes of entertainment are nothing new and they’ve been handsomely rewarded for their efforts with our dollars.  Starting with Flip Wilson’s the devil made me do it “Geraldine” and in recent years Martin Lawrence’s “Big Mama’s House,” Shawn and Marlon Wayans’ “White Chicks,” Eddie Murphy’s “Norbit,” and Tyler Perry’s popular character “Madea.”  With the exception of “White Chicks,” all are Black men dressed in drag as Black women.  The exception is the Wayans brothers, who flipped the script and took on the roles of two white women.

What’s the difference between a Black man in drag and a white man in blackface when both are depicting a Black woman?

Some have argued that Black Americans should not complain about Knipp’s character Shirley Q. Liquor because we turn a blind eye towards Black actors who also perform in questionable roles.

You’ll get no argument from me regarding Eddie Murphy as Rasputia Latimore in “Norbit.”  In fact, long before the film was in theaters, the billboards promoting it were enough to make me wanna holla and throw up both my hands.  And while I definitely didn’t appreciate Murphy taking on the role of a fat Black mean woman for the rest of the world to sit around and laugh at, I can’t overlook the fact he did it as a Black man.

Hattie Mae Pierce, Martin Lawrence’s character Big Mama, is a Black religious woman living in the South.  While Big Mama is definitely a big mama, she isn’t mean.  However unlike Shirley Q. Liquor, she isn’t on welfare, we never saw her guzzling down 40 ounces of beer, and to the best of my knowledge she doesn’t have 19 kids, one of which being named Kmartina.  Oh, and like Murphy, Lawrence is a Black man.

This brings me to Tyler Perry and Mabel “Madea” R. Simmons, best known for the way she says, “Heluur!  This is Madea-ur!” 

Madea probably comes the closet to Knipp’s Shirley Q. Liquor character, being that she didn’t find out that Deacon Leroy Brown was her daughter Cora’s father until her class reunion in 2003 and she’s known to drive a Caddy.  She will argue with anyone, has a penchant for her unique pronunciation and enunciation of words, and is part of a large family with many children and grandchildren.

"Madea" or "Madear" is a typical Black Southern name for a grandmother.  The term is a shortened form of "Mother Dear."

Again, criticism withstanding, Perry is a Black man taking on this role.

A favorite defense of whites against anyone Black who takes issue with Shirley Q. Liquor is the Wayans brothers as Brittany and Tiffany Wilson in “White Chicks.” 

As if somehow, two Black men taking on the characters of white blonde-haired and blue eyed cruise line heiresses is even remotely the same as a white man in blackface taking on the role of an overweight Black woman.  Mind you, this woman sings in his parody The 12 Days of Kwanzaa, “On the fifth day of Kwanzaa, my check came in the mail.  AFDC!  Thank you, Lawd!  Come on kids; let's go to the store for some collard greens, ham hocks, and cheese!”

I wish that when men, white or Black, decided to go in drag as Black women we were always portrayed as beautiful wealthy yet dim socialites. 

The difference between a Black man in the role of a Black woman and a white man putting on blackface and attempting to do the same is that whites don’t have the same history of slavery and racial discrimination that Blacks do.

Since Black women were brought to America, as slaves, we have been forced to endure every form of racism and sexism there is at the hands of whites.

Let me recap it for you.

First, it was the Massuh we had to contend with and his penchant for darker skin that is primarily responsible for the various shades of brown that represent our people today.  Janie Crawford, Leafy, Nanny, and Zora Neale Hurston.  Ashay!

Then for many years, we were forced to take on the role of raising whites children, cleaning their houses, washing their laundry, and cooking their meals.  In keeping in line with America’s approved racial etiquette, we did all of this while being referred to as “girl” or “nigger” and remembering to never look whites directly in the face.  Mrs. Thomas, Lena Younger, Sofie, and Florida Evans.  Ashay!

We dealt with Jim Crow and with the racist police officers, teachers, landlords, bosses, and bus drivers.  Rosa Parks.  Ashay!

For many years, we were denied roles in major motion pictures.  When they couldn’t get away with that anymore, we were denied the same wages as our female white counterparts and the accolades bestowed upon them.  Hattie McDaniel and Dorothy Dandridge.  Ashay!

Now it’s 2008 and we’re nappy-headed hoes and being found in shacks, raped, beaten and urinated on.  In addition, just to remind us that we’re still Black, our asses are being analyzed during tennis matches on live television for the world to see. 

Misogynistic lyrics recited by Black men and financed by white, continue to portray us as sexual objects to the point where some of us are so confused that we’ve gladly taken on the role.

So I find it ridiculous when anyone, white or Black, defends a white man who puts on blackface and an afro wig, calls himself the Queen of Dixie, and  says things like “I'm gonna burn me up some chitlins and put some ketchup on there and aks Jesus to forgive my sins.”

Is Knipp even capable of understanding that back in the day after pigs were slaughtered, their intestines, the chitterlings Knipp mocks, along with hog maws, pigs' feet, and neck bones were given to slaves by their Massuh to eat because it was he who controlled their food choices?

And unlike with Tyler Perry’s films, there is no feel good lesson of morality at the end of Knipp’s performance.  Just a bunch white gay men and women, probably drunk, applauding the performance of one of their own for being able bring to life their own racist stereotypes of how they see Black women.

This isn’t an argument in defense of characters like Murphy’s Rasputia Latimore.  Rather it’s an argument that these characters, while demeaning to Black women, are not racist. 

The same can’t be said of Charles Knipp’s Shirley Q. Liquor character that is demeaning, disrespectful, and racist by virtue of the fact that he is a white man in blackface that is using the most negative stereotypes of Blacks to entertain other whites.  Stereotypes that are based on traits that can be directly traced back to the history of racial discrimination faced by Blacks from whites in this country. 

For example, the generations of Black women and men who in their youth weren’t allowed to attend school with white children and were forced to go to work to help support their families.  Because of America’s sanctioning of segregation and racial discrimination, they never learned how to speak and write English properly; therefore creating the dialect that Knipp so often makes fun of.

Somehow, I find it hard to believe that if the heel was on the other foot, and some Black comedian was traveling the country selling himself as “a piece of poor white trailer park trash” in whiteface, that he’d be welcomed with open arms by whites.  I’ll take it a step further to add, that if that same Black comedian were in whiteface and impersonating a white gay man, it’d be off with his head…literally.

So while I know it’s easy to try and point the finger of blame back on Blacks in defense of Charles Knipp for our poor excuses of comedy in the form of Black men up in drag, unfortunately it’s just not the same.  One is just ignorant, while the other, Knipp, is the expression of years of covert racism towards Blacks from whites post integration.  I expected whites to defend Knipp; after all, they make up his core audience to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars annually.  However, for Blacks to do it is a slap in the face of our ancestors and all that they sacrificed for us to have the opportunities that we have today. 

I don’t do ignorance.

Comments

[Really?]

Wah wah wah! I'm a sad black woman! SHUT UP YOU OVER SENSITIVE BRATS! The crap you say about "white people" and can get away with is ASTONISHING. You can dish it but you can't take it?! Pathetic!

[twitter.com/adaliaisfree]

See, I don't get it. You can scream that "whites" are the enemy, that "we" are trying to "keep you down." Mention anything about how, as you like to grammatically misspeak, "Black" [with a capital B] people that's anywhere near racist, and suddenly, we're evil. We're the originators of slavery. You're propagating racism yourself, Miss Cannick. NO - not racism against blacks. Racism against whites. It can happen. Racism is the prejudice of any race against any other race. You need to go out and take a look at life. Come to my high school. I am a white student in a school where the demographics are somewhere around 50% black, 30% Hispanic, and 20% white. There is no racism in our school. We get along perfectly. We make lighthearted jokes about each other's race, sexuality, height, weight, eye color, choice of music - because a person can help what race they are just as much as they can help the other factors. But their way of thinking - that's a different story. Obviously the way you were taught is what you have stuck with. White people are not the devil. It is people like you who prejudge based on centuries old occurrences who are unfair.

I do agree with you on blackface, though. And to those enraged whites who believe that the Wayans' performance justifies it, they did not perform the movie in "whiteface". Blackface performances have a heavy racist connotation. Had this man performed it in the manner the Wayans had, the way Robin Williams portrayed Mrs. Doubtfire... It would not be so offensive. This man is parodying a stereotype that does exist, just as the Wayans are parodying a stereotype that does exist. Both are absurd and should be laughed at. They are two extremes of the same scale. But one cannot resuscitate a manner of theater that has long since been condemned for its racial inappropriateness.

[Watusi Jenkins]

OH LAWD MIZ CANNICK.
Slavery slavery slavery.
You wadn't born in africa, yo mama wadn't born in africa and I be willin' to bet yo mama's mama wadn't born in africa!
Slavery is DEAD DEAD DEAD.
You be proclamatin' bout white people who be racist and I'll be damned if they aint the same white people who fought for your rights as a US citizen.
And lemme aks you just WHY you think it be okay for black men to get all up in a hollywood movie to make fun of some black ladies but it aint right for a white man to make the same jokes?? That just don't make no sense miz Cannick.
And Also lemme aks you why you think it okay for two annoyin' as hell black men to dress up like a couple of white ho's and be disrespectful to the trashy white ho's of the world?

LAWWDDD MIZ CANNICK I could go on forever but you know I gots high blood and thinkin' bout you sittin up on your high horse on the webnet hollerin bout slavery just gets ma bloods abroilin'
Whoooo you tell you mama I aks her how she durrrin.

[New Orleans Fruit]

Jasmyne, you are a MESS. You are not a journalist. You are simply another hatemonger who wants to control everything people do in the name of racial sensitivity.

[SteadyCat]

The link to sign the petition doesn't work anymore. :-(

[JustMe]

The fact of the matter is that whites choose to be ignorant. They also choose to ignore the history of slavery and the atrocities that occurred within it so that they don't have to deal with the guilt of it all. By not dealing with the guilt, they can absolve themselves of any responsibilities. You stated the truth, that whites don't have the history that Blacks do and have inflicted the pain that Blacks experience and now try to have comedy as some sort of outlet. So, it's not the same for a white man and Black man doing this because whites still have the power and privilege attached to it and whites still inflict all forms of racism onto not just Blacks but all minorities. Those that oppose your truth, are simply trying to relish in their wrongful behavior so that they can ignore the truth.

[Joey]

It's another version of Jasmyne's "If we do it it's OK because our ancestors, not us, were slaves! If THEY do it, it's WRONG because I don't like it and I'm black and the world owes me a living" Woo. :) Otherwise an intelligent woman, Jasmyne falls off at Shirley Q or Isiah Washington.

Yes, I'm sure had the others took you to Africa and on other trips, you'd not be on Isiah's side at all.

If you want racism to end it's time to end this priority crap, or "my race is better than your's nyah-nyah" that seems to go on here. Whites disrespect whites, blacks, and latinos. Black disrespect blacks, whites, and latinos. And repeat, mix, throw in the others, and repeat.

If you really thing anyone is going to think less of a well educated african american because of SQL, you really need to get out of your whole and see the world instead of the way you describe the world.

Double standards are what makes racism, and it's certainly a two way street.

[Appalled]

You are so right, Chrystal. The fact that there exist white gay racists in the world COMPLETELY justifies homophobia on the part of Isaah Washington. After all, gays don't deserve rights if every single one of them isn't in lock step with other civil rights movements.

"Rights" are definitely not inalienable expressions of an individual's dignity; they are quid-pro-quo exchanges between those who have power, and those who have the power to discriminate.

Why, just a few months ago one of my more conservative gay white friends expressed reservations about reparations. We should TOTALLY repeal any and all gay anti-discrimination laws because of that!

After all, if one gay man ever uses the word "nigger," you are TOTALLY justified in continuing your endless litany of "faggot faggot faggot."

[TEE]

Shirley Q is not representative of
black women and I will not sign a petition to stop him/her. If you want to have a cause start in our community. Start with the gangs, the videos and drug dealers that are bringing down our communities and killing our children. What Shirley Q is doing is harmless compared to going to funerals and burying children every day.
You are wasting time and enery on Shirley Q

[Shane AKA BLKSeaGoat]

Both GLAAD and NGLTF made stands about SQL 5 years ago. She isn't new and Jasmyne knows this.

What has NBJC done?

The rest of your post is too hypocritical to dignify with a response.

People...get a grip...

Why is it acceptable to create a super duper gross exhaggeration of a whole race of women? This is the point with Shirley...It is a gross,extreme exhaggeration. There have been plenty of drag queens that have portrayed black women in a graceful manner. Why is he going out of his why to be so over the top? Why does he have to perform in a poorly done black face?

All the black comedians do their characters with some boundaries. The make up job is superb. Character are based on relatives or friends. Who is former minister Knipp basing his character on?

Black women have such a bad reputation for being loud, non intellectual, having bad attitudes, large, which is mainly fostered by television images. Since we can converse about this silly man proves the stereotype is not true. Ask yourselves do you want young girls to look at Knipp's brand of comedy and this is what she may grow up to be?

Unless he plans to donate to the Negro collge fund this should continue till he stops portraying this character.

Is GLADD making a stance on this guy? They are suppose to protect everybody. They had no problems trying to ruin Isiah Washington.
Chrystal.

[Denny]

Jasmyne I just wanted to say thank you for speaking out on this and you have my support. I'll probably be posting on this on my own blog but thank you for fighting the good fight even when people don't want to hear the truth.

Keep standing tall.

-Denny

[Professor Tracey]

@Jasmyne -

You make an extremely valid and powerful point of why Knipp is so offensive, but you stumble mightly by attempting to justify black men doing the same thing. I understand that you don't like people using the black male versions to make excuses for Knipp. And you are absolutely right, but if you really care about black women and girls, let folks make their excuses and keep protesting.

I wish you had spent some time on other black women's blogs who are supporting your ban and find out what they think about black men in drag. I don't think it is just a thing of bad black comic choices, it's black men thinking they know something about black women to make fun of them, just like Knipp thinks he knows something about blacks to do what he does. If Knipp doen't have the historical suffering and racial makeup to make light of black women, black men don't have historical suffering and genitalia to understand black women's lives either.

These big mama characters that black men so love to play are often the most misunderstood and overlooked women in the black community. They repeatedly gave their all for others and rarely got much in return, but the love and respect of the neighborhood. I know plenty of Big mama's that were battered women and grinned and beared it for others. None of those movies ever showed these women to be complete characters, just one-dimensional harpies with a sharp tongue, a weight problem, and an object for insults.

If black women want to stand with their heads held high, we have to fight on two fronts. We cannot allow black men to make fun of us or abuse us like they do in hip hop and we must can't certainly stand for any more of Ms. Shirley.

@Truth -

if you think Jasmyne is so racist, why in the hell are you reading her blog in the first damn place? And you clearly don't know what a real racist is since you throw the title around so lightly.

[Truth]

Jasmyne, considering you're one of the worst racists on the planet, you really haven't got a leg to stand on.

But "White Chicks" sure was hella funny, huh?

[Shane AKA BLKSeaGoat]

Focused,

You are right, but if Jasmyne justifies black actors'/comedians' disrespect of black womanhood by performing negative stereotypes, she invalidates her purpose of crucifying Shirley Q.

You cannot have it both ways. If Jasmyne is truly concerned about the image of black womanhood, her criticisms should be leveled at ANYONE who seeks to pervert it regardless of their race.

So while what Chuck is doing is offensive, that same applies for Aries Spears, Debra Morgan, Eddie Murphy, Sean and Marvin, Jamie Foxx, Martin Lawrence, and Tyler Perry. Trying to justify why attacking a white person while not attacking a black person for doing the same thing is hypocritical.

Her current argument is just as flawed as Isiah Thomas' idea that black men calling black women bitches is less offensive than white people doing it. I'm a self-aware, proud, black man and I don't do ignorance either. I also don't do hypocrisy.

Wrong is wrong irrespective of one's color.

[Otis]

I signed the petition and agree with Mari-Djata that this performance is just updated blackface of 1915 film 'Birth Of A Nation'. The lazy, murderous, white woman chasing Black man is replaced by SQL, the lazy, 19 children having, uneducated 'welfare queen'. This is not about laughing at some aspect of southern Black culture, this is disrepecting Black women and all Black people by reinforcing the worst stereotypes about us. And shame on RuPaul for supporting this madness.

[felicia]

to sista-she don't need to stop until the madness stops. stop hatin, if you don't like it go somewhere else. there are lot of people that appreciate that everyone isn't asleep at the wheel.

[sistah]

Jasmyne girl, I am getting so tired of hearing about Shirley Q. Liquor. I think we all have the point. Are you ever going to move on and blog about anything else, or do we all need to just start going to the Shirley Q. Liquor website every day to make sure it is shoved down our throats? A sistah gets tired of hearing something after nearly a week girl!

[focusedpurpose]

it would be nice if black men would not provide the predictable go to of "black men do it". it is a recurring theme and black men should be ashamed and do something else, immediately. sisters, too, for that matter---the blonde black woman from borat's movie made me want to stalk her and beat her severely in the face and neck area after seeing her choices. (i am not violent and have resisted the strong urge. instead, i have "written it out" of my system)

blessings!
focusedpurpose

[Mari-Djata]

It gets me when people try to defend Knipp and the likes by saying things like "...Well, black men do the same thing." It doesn't make it right. In fact, it makes you seem more ignorant to the cause if you are willing to fall into the same patterns of wrong doing as the people around you. But THEN they forget the fact that they are white people doing these racist plays in BLACKFACE --one of the most racist form of entertainment on earth. They seem to forget "The Birth of a Nation" and other Klan propaganda that was fueled by blackface. They seem to forget the stereotypes re-enforced by white men because even black people, when they had nothing else, had enough pride to not depict their race in such a way for white money...

The moral of the story is that no matter if it is a black man or a white man playing the role, both are wrong... but there is a such thing as priorities...