Low Blow

Thanks to singer/songwriter Lee on The Bachelorette, I've ceased to watch this year's show. As a black woman, I'm highly offended by his behaviour and very disappointed in the production decisions. For the first time ever an African-American has been chosen as the Bachelorette. She's smart, good-looking and has a great job. So, although the cast is "diverse", most of the men her age or older are white. What does that mean? Her options are limited. She either chooses a white man or none at all. Apparently she chose one of them. It's bad enough that professional African-American women in the USA have a hard time finding a spouse within the race. This season was set up to illustrate the reality of that. As such I find it anti-climatic.

So, that's turn off #1. Then there is the folly of wasting space on a joker called Lucas. I'm sure he's a great guy and there's a lovely woman out there for him somewhere, but Rachel? Putting him into the cast was an insult to viewers' intelligence. But hey, apparently they call the viewers "losers".

If that wasn't bad enough, there was the Demario fiasco. His "girlfriend" let the producers know he ain't supposed to be looking, even before taping may've started and rather than brief Rachel and let her decide if to keep him on or not, they appear to have let him in among the "suitors" and let the girlfriend show up at an event to which an audience was invited to confront him - and potentially embarrass Rachel, who lost no time in giving him the boot. Really? Was that necessary? These are real people with real lives, not melodrama. Then again, art imitates life, doesn't it?

Source: The Bachelorette

So now on to the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. Lee. Known to producers for comments that may be considered "racist" and having selected an African-American queen for this year's edition, he's given the option of agreeing to be one of the "suitors". He has no problem agreeing to be on - after all it's bound to be good exposure and he doesn't know how far he'll get with his southern "Yes Ma'am" manners. But then he starts to try riling up the black guys. Yeah, I call it race-baiting. Who does he pick on? A wrestler from Vegas.

Source: The Bachelorette

Wrestlers are known to be tough, not charming. Yet clearly, Kenny is a good man. Not who I'd pick for Rachel but a decent sort who dearly loves his 10-year-old daughter. Here is Lee trying to make the guy look like a jerk with the excuse that they're all there to "one-up" each other - yet he can tell some white cast members he has no problem with them? Exactly who does he have a problem with? Clearly the non-white guys.

So that was it for me. This "loser" has other things to do with her Monday nights than to watch The Bachelorette my dear #teamrachel. I bow out!

  Source: DIVAORIGINALE4

Thank goodness I've discovered Hallyu to keep me busy this summer - and Being Mary Jane is back on BET - although I have some issues with her character's foibles but that's fiction, so I watch it for what it is.