BANNED BOONDOCKS EPISODE

For all my heads who may have never seen the Boondocks - it is an American cartoon series that provides some biting social commentary through irreverent humor. This episode was supposed to air on the Cartoon Network, but it was banned. It actually aired in Canada and has leaked on line. Watch it before it gets pulled! (note you have to watch both parts to "get it")

Why was it banned? Well this episode (along with another one) indicts another network, BET, Black Entertainment Television, for it's legacy of providing stereotypical and damaging images of Black America to the world. It gives tremendous insight as to how a significant amount of African Americans in the US feel about the network. What is this sentiment? -- that BET does more damage than good, by perpetuating stereotypes and exploiting black self-hatred for financial gain. Uncle Rukus is the epitome of a self-hating African-American Man. In fact, he believes that despite his physical appearance, he is not black but white . See what happens when during the taping of his own reality TV show, sanctioned by BET, he is (hilariously) faced with the scientific reality that he has no white blood in his genetic make-up...

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(just in case you couldn't watch it....read the following. Please note that even below doesn't do the entire episode justice in its commentary about self-hatred and institutionalized racism)

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The news (of not being of the caucasion persuasion) sends Rukus into an identity crisis. He eventually becomes suicidal and thereby jeopardizes the taping of the show. Consequently, BET's key executive, Wedgie Hudlin, (a play off of BET's actual Entertainment President Reggie Hudlin) does an intervention, where the two bond over the network's hate for black people. Hudlin unashamedly admits that the only thing that suffers from its programming is the children and says "...we can live with that". Interestingly, the last scene of the episode shows Rukus back to work as a school crossing guard talking affirmingly, pleasantly, and even insightfully to two young black children (the main Boondocks protagonists) encouraging them to safely cross the street. (A surprise to both the viewer and the children. We are all led to think wow did Rukus' experience really transform him?)-- just then we discover that he was actually setting the kids (and us) up to be hit by a bus. He laughs heartily. Like BET, Rukus coats his poison with honey. It may look, taste and sound good, and even seem harmless, but if ingested, it'll rot you from the inside out, -- as exemplified by Mr Rukus himself.

Take note UK, especially since BET just launched in your hood!

Flava reppin the global Hip Hop movement!