Hello, my name is Jessica, and I am a proud bravoholic. Reality TV has definitely taken a back seat to parenthood these days, but I will always hold a special place in my heart for all things Real Housewives. Even if I don’t watch every single episode of every franchise, I still love to stay up to date with all of the gossip and goings-on. These days, so much of the drama is happening between seasons and off-screen thanks to social media and smart phones. No longer do we have to wait for months on end to feed the trashy tv beast living inside of us – we can simply head on over to Instagram to see the bad behavior: Erika Jayne’s marriage imploding, videos of Ashley Darby’s husband’s indiscretions, Kelly Dodd being… Kelly Dodd lol. Which brings me to the topic at hand: racism and cancel culture.
If you weren’t aware (and some of you probably aren’t because you aren’t a degenerate like me), many Bravo fan accounts and websites that regularly recap The Real Housewives have recently decided to cease all coverage of RHOC and boycott the show. This is mostly due to the recent behavior of one Kelly Dodd. A proud anti-masker, Kelly Dodd spent the height of the global pandemic traveling from coast to coast via private plane and using her wealth and connections for weekly covid tests when our nation was facing a shortage. She has referred to the pandemic as “God’s way of thinning the herd” and alluded to supporting the dangerous QANAN movement. Years ago Kelly was caught on camera saying she “doesn’t like black guys”, and has referred to those protesting for equality as “animals”. The final straw for many was when Kelly wore a hat at her bridal shower that said “DRUNK WIVES MATTER”, thinking it was a “funny” play on the Black Lives Matter movement.
A lot people however, do not agree that the Black Lives Matter movement is funny. I personally found her behavior to be incredibly insensitive and tone deaf. She doubled down on the whole thing, claiming we all can’t take a joke. News flash: racism isn’t a joke, and with half the country believing that it’s not even real – this definitely didn’t sit right with me. If your beliefs align with mine, it makes all the sense in the world to not want to support this woman on TV. If there is a similar situation happening in your TV universe, you may be thinking the same thing about someone else. But… I decided to watch The Real Housewives of Orange County anyway.
The horror! You may be thinking. And trust me, I get it. We’ve got to put our money where our mouth is right? Let’s show people they can’t misbehave and still expect dollars in their pockets! It is important to choose how you spend your time and money wisely, but where we all draw the line in regards to support is a tricky decision. But as of now, you can’t tear me away from my favorite trashy TV shows! Never mind that this was literally on of the worst seasons ever of The Real Housewives of Orange County. I watched it, sometimes with a glass of wine in hand, shamelessly enjoying the absurdity of it all. I need to hold space for joy in my life while actively holding to my boundaries in other areas.
Automatic Ad Middle Of Content
Where I choose to start is with my literal wallet. So no, I will no longer be buying any overpriced clothes I can’t afford anyway from fashion brands whose racist ways of doing business have been called out. I will not be recommending a certain baby sleep specialist who donated a shit ton of money Trump’s campaign as recently as late 2020. I will always actively check the social media of brands I want to buy and support from to see if there is diversity, body neutrality, and a loud and clear anti-racist stance (because um… why shouldn’t there be?).
I’m really not sure how I feel about cancel culture overall, but I absolutely believe in accountability. And let me be clear, I’m not talking about a simple difference of opinion – I’m talking about racism. There are no “two sides” to anything regarding racism, sexism, anti-Semitism… you get the point. I personally think cancel culture became a thing because we’d let certain people slide by without consequences for too long. Keeping up with the Bravo theme, anyone remember when LuAnn from RHONY decided to dress up as Diana Ross using blackface? Or when Stassi used the term “Nazi chic?” and said Black people complained too much about racism? These incidents were barely touched upon at the time and quickly shoved under the rug. Enter modern day cancel culture – a lashing out for letting these types incidents go by unchecked for too long. It’s this huge hot button issue because we have now rightfully started calling out people for their questionable and/or racist behavior.
And for the record, this controversial cancel culture we speak of may be gaining a ton of popularity due to the current political climate, but it is nothing new. Didn’t we all say we were going to stop listening to Chris Brown and R. Kelly? What about watching Mel Gibson or Woody Allen movies? Do you still eat Chick-Fil-A? Did any of you throw a snake emoji on Taylor Swift’s Instagram? The list goes on.
There will always be problematic people, saying and doing problematic things. How we react as whole can and should make a difference. When done correctly, holding people accountable is what drives our society forward, and keeps us evolving and changing for the better. And how we choose to do so is ever evolving. So while today Ramona “All Lives Matter” Singer, is one of my favorite housewives of all time and I love watching her on TV (I just can’t help it!), perhaps I’ll feel differently in the future. I’m not perfect, and do my best. Oh and yes, in case you were wondering, there’s definitely a possibility for Real Housewives recaps here in the future 🙂