Blocked...

Today in this very special edition of A day in the life….

I want to talk about the hurt and shame I feel at being BLOCKED. On Twitter.
I sweah foh GAWT, my soul was hurt!

Wanna hear about it?
Well here it go!

Recently I started following a person on twitter that was pretty cool, or so I thought.
I didn’t know this person at all but a lot of people I follow retweeted a lot of this person’s comments. I followed based on that.
Now as far as twitter goes, I’m not a “I follow you so you have to follow me” person, I don’t ask anyone to follow me, not that there’s anything wrong with that, its just not my thing.
I enjoyed this person’s tweets for the most part. This person was a prolific tweeter and commented on any and everything.
I found their discussions of mental illness; Including their own struggle with depression; to be really open and honest.
Sometimes I disagreed with a particular stance on an issue, but overall I thought they made some interesting points even on the issues where we disagreed.

So along comes the topic of Tyler Perry and Why Did I Get Married, Too.

Now for those that don’t know, I like Tyler Perry.
Yes his movies and plays lack depth and are heavy handed with religiousity.
However, I don’t mind them overall. I like a corny bad movie every once in a while and aside from that one movie with Antoine Fisher and reading prostitute, Rudy Huxtable, they aiight.
I don’t think its cooning, or promoting stereotypes, or any of the other terms commonly tossed around about his movies. They are just “so bad its good” type movies. But that’s my opinion.
Aside from that; I must say I have respect for Tyler. He did it his way. He worked his way up, he opened his own studio, he wanted a tv show but wanted to do it his way and held out until he got it. He puts his money where his mouth is.
That is way more than I can say for any filmmaker on record when it comes to racism in cinema.
I think if some people would step down off their high horse and work WITH Tyler to make more well rounded movies, instead of standing on the sideline name-calling and then sniveling over to the big studios begging and pleading, we would have much better movies and film representation, but that’s neither here nor there.

So I get in to a convo with my prolific tweeter where I basically say the same thing as above.
The tweeter states that while that’s not their particular stance, they can understand why it is the assessment of others.
I responded that my point is I don’t understand the “hatred” that a lot of people have for him. I think overall, we either like or dislike things. However sometimes it can be taken to far, just like its not hating if I don’t like a particular artist, song, or work of art but it aint cooning every single time a black person makes a movie for a black audience, either.

I don’t know what about that was wrong or disrespectful etc, or if their hate of all things Tyler Perry related was so strong that my mild justification took them over the edge but I noticed the next day that I saw a lot of retweets but I wasn’t seeing the original.
So I pull up said person’s page and attempt to re follow.
I received the “you have been blocked at the user’s request” message.

I was really shocked. What?
Not unfollowed but blocked like because I like Tyler I am not only not worth following but I aint worth allowing to read or respond to their tweets period.
Shut Yo Mouth!
I think that’s a bit extreme. I mean DAYUM! All that cause I admitted I liked Tyler Perry?
Don’t get me wrong I have been pushed to the point of unfollowing?
I have unfollowed people? Lil Duvall after the “itaintrape” trending topic? Un f!cking followed.
Bow wow? For just being an overall ass? Yes, ( I don’t know why I followed him to begin with)
Somethings just rub you the wrong way or send a strong message about the TYPE of person you are dealing with.
I also get that I am hypocritical, cause if you don’t like Prince or Michael Jackson?
And you don’t like New edition and Bobby brown solo? We got a problem.
I am definitely gone side eye you something fierce as well as discount any of your recommendations where music is concerned.

I get why some people don’t like Tyler Perry’s work. That’s fine. What I don’t like about this whole situation is that it brings up the issue of the unwritten code of what is acceptable for “educated black people”.

I could run down my credentials, and they are impressive, but unnecessary because guess what?

I am an educated black person, I read, I write, I go to the theater for more than just Tyler Perry plays, I am open minded, I step outside my lane.
But I also like soul food, sweet potato pie, rap music i.e. lil Wayne and young Jeezy, not just EPB approved hip hop. Eightball and Mjg are my favorite rap group, just ahead of the EBP favorite Outkast.

I curse, I can be pushed to the point where I will fight, yes, as in actually throw them blows and I have been caught on occasion, doing the stanky leg, swag surfing and my dougie, my fresh is flyer than a muthaf!cka.
I embody the duality of black culture, I am all of these things and none of these things at the same time.
I don’t apologize or make excuses or think everyone else has to be like me. I mean stuntin is a habit,
But you don’t have to get like me to do it, contrary to popular belief.

*also, I didnt like Why Did I get Married 2 he ruined the movie in the last 20 minutes...