Whenever I read a blog, I look for the comments that follow. I always want to know what other people are thinking or more importantly who’s taking the time to write a comment. I think the responses are a reflection of a large segment of the population that feels affected enough by the issues in the media and protected enough by the veil of anonymity to respond with their true thoughts in the hopes that someone will hear and care about what they think. If you don’t already know, let me tell you that a lot of people take the time to write comments to blogs, including me. Blogs that are carried on major websites like The Chicago Tribune, Newsweek, CNN, NPR, and Huffington Post get more traffic and consequently more comments from a wider audience. There usually aren’t photos next to the comments and people rarely, if ever, use their real names but I usually can tell from the comments the race of the person commenting. I guess that method is about as reliable as guessing someone’s race based on their voice over the telephone. The bottom line is that my methods are not scientific at all but based on my personal experiences with people of various races during my short time on this earth.
Today I was reading a blog on The Chicago Tribune website, Waiting on the World (John Mayer) to Change? and the topic was John Mayer’s recent racist comment. The blog referred to another blog with the same topic, John Mayer Is Not Alone. The latter blog had about 375 comments.
If you’re not aware of the details of John Mayer’s recent comment, here they are:
PLAYBOY: Do black women throw themselves at you?
MAYER: I don't think I open myself to it. My [penis] is sort of like a white supremacist. I've got a Benetton heart and a [expletive] David Duke [penis].
The comments that follow both blogs are more offensive than Mayer’s comments. What follows is a just a sample of the comments that I read:
• “This is one of the most foolish things I've read on this subject. The guy made a joke that didn't come across well”.
• “So, essentially Mayer said that he accepts all people, but prefers to have sex with white women. Hmmmm....and you got all of that "not good enough" rant from that? Perhaps women should be more concerned about getting an education and saving sex and having babies until they are at least 25 and married, instead of blaming "men in power" for judging them as "not good enough".”
• “Btw there are many black men who won't have sex with black women....the proof is in the vanilla pudding on their arm. Get mad at that.”
• “He took it too far with his fast talking and HE IS LEARNING FROM IT...”
The comments following the two blogs tell me that:
• There are a lot of ignorant people out there.
• Even people that perceive themselves as “tolerant” have no clue as to why Mayer’s comments were offensive.
• There are racist people in our midst that still believe stereotypes of black female promiscuity and immorality.
• People use racism and prejudice interchangeably yet they have two distinct definitions.
• Black women are still devalued today because of the stereotypes that were set during slavery.
• Ain’t I a Woman- STILL?
You probably think that you know what my opinion of John Mayer is. Well, my opinion might surprise you. I'm offended, but not for the reasons you might think. Prior to the media attention around his comments, I had no idea who this person was. I will admit that my personal preference in music is narrow -much like his sexual preferences- and doesn’t include him- I’ve never heard his music. As a black woman, I’m not offended by his comment. He simply revealed his true self and his true self would not have sex with a black woman. That’s his preference and he made it clear by referencing David Duke that the reasons behind his preference are racist and other groups should be leery of him as well. He was merely answering a question honestly; black women were just innocent bystanders. There are a lot of other folks that should be offended as well. What offended me more was the question, “Do black women throw themselves at you?” This guy is just another person in the spotlight that forgot where he was and spoke his true feelings and I am grateful for that because it keeps me on my toes and crystal clear about how black women are viewed in society- STILL.
