Is Tyler Perry Hurting The Black Community? (674 hits)
Tyler Perry has two new shows on the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) that are causing a stir among some critics. The shows are The Haves and The Have Nots, and Love Thy Neighbor. Although the shows received highly-rated debuts, some critics want the shows removed because they claim they are damaging the black community.
The petition claims that Tyler Perry's shows are hurtful to the Black community because they perpetuate stereotypes. The petitioners claim the shows should not be on OWN which has always "used her television show to educate, empower, and uplift people of all races to be better versions of themselves." The petition claims the shows are supporting racial stereotypes.
The originator of the petition is Eva Vega of Los Angeles, California. The petition posted on Change.org has only 204 signatures so far. This is by no means strong enough to result in the shows being removed from OWN. But it does raise the question as to whether or not the shows are portraying African Americans in a negative manner.
Perhaps the comments from readers speak for themselves. While some feel there are far more serious issues to be concerned about rather than Tyler Perry, others have expressed a desire for a black-owned network like OWN to have "more serious shows pertaining to the black condition."
