D.L. Hughley and Forever 21
D.L. Hughley Said What?
I am a huge proponent of black people, especially when it comes to books, television, and movies. I think that our talent is sometimes overlooked for no other reason than the color of our skin. I support pretty much every venue I can to help spread the word about my brother’s and sisters and anything that they have going on.
I record the D.L. Hughley show that airs on TVOne and up until the other day I have enjoyed watching it and telling others about it or asking them if they’ve had the opportunity to record it.
On a recent show, he touched on the fact that Forever 21 mailed diet protein bars to women who ordered plus-sized clothing. I know that D.L. is a comedian, and I respect his talent. However, I was disappointed at the approach he took with this issue. Joking about weight is one thing, and I think that anyone in double digits has come to understand that someone at some time is going to have a fat joke to share, so that was not the issue. The issue was that he appeared to be very serious about thinking this was ok to do and that shaming overweight people would force them to take a step back and look at themselves and lose weight.
How wrong you are my brother. Would putting bananas in orders that had addresses associated with black the population force black people to want to be monkeys or go back to Africa? No. It would enrage a community. Some might argue that the difference is that people are born black, and that weight is something you can control. I get that, except it’s not. Some weight issues are part of your DNA, your genes, your biological make-up just like being more susceptible to alcoholism and drug use are.
For some, weight is a physical handicap, and for others, it is a mental one. If it were as simple as eating a protein bar instead of a meal, then I wouldn’t be writing this blog post. Forever 21 should be ashamed of themselves and so should D.L. Hughley. Forever 21 never has to worry about mailing me anything single or double digits, and one more outburst about fat people and D.L. Hughley doesn’t have to worry about me watching any of his shows past, present or future. There are other issues that can be addressed on a platform such as his, so I hope he focuses on all of those going forward.
Turning the other cheek is not always easy, but sometimes it is for the greater good. I hope that this is for the greater good.
The Writer
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