Snoop Dogg has spoken of his frustration at how black people’s stories are presented in mainstream culture, with tales of exploitation and slavery being rehashed to the exclusion of narratives celebrating contemporary black culture.
In a video posted on his Instagram, Snoop says, “No disrespect, but I can’t watch no motherfucking more black movies where n***as get dogged out — 12 Years A Slave, Roots, Underground — I can’t watch none of that shit”.
Referencing the eight-hour, four-part History Channel series, Roots — a remake of the 70s ABC series based on Alex Haley’s Pulitzer Prize-winning 1976 novel — which started yesterday, Snoop says, “How the fuck they going to put Roots on, on Memorial Day? They going to just keep beating that shit into our heads about how they did us, huh?”
“I don’t understand America,” he continues, “They just want to keep showing the abuse that we took hundreds and hundreds of years ago. But guess what? We taking the same abuse! Think about that part”.
Not simply criticizing the films that recount the history of black oppression and slavery, Snoop instead wants to know why they are shown to the exclusion of other stories, stories that celebrate black successes. “Why don’t y’all go make a series about the success black folks are having?” he asks.
Echoing the voices of critics during the #OscarsSoWhite scandal, when several critics noted that one of the only ways for a black actor to get a nomination was by playing a slave, Snoops asks incredulously, “The only success we have is Roots and 12 Years A Slave and shit like that, huh? Fuck y’all, I ain’t watching that shit.”
“Let’s create our own shit based on today, how we live and how we inspire people today,” he concludes. “Black is what’s real. Fuck that old shit.”
Credits
Text Charlotte Gush
Photography via @snoopdogg