An apology from Raven-Symoné is deemed not enough by the black community. Miss Symoné is under fire after claiming on The View that she would never hire a person with a “ghetto-sounding name” like Watermelondrea.
Another day, another controversy from Raven-Symoné. After defending a reporter, who compared Michelle Obama to a monkey, announcing to the world that she was not African-American, but only American. Raven-Symoné is back at it.
Last Thursday, while talking about how some people are discriminated against because of their names, the former Disney star made a shocking revelation. The singer and actress explained that she would never employ a person with a black or “ghetto” name.
Moreover, if the statement was not disturbing enough, the TV star gave the racist and strange made-up name Watermelondrea as an example. Miss Raven-Symoné claimed:
“Just to bring it back, can we take back ‘racist’ and say ‘discriminatory,’ because I think that’s a better word. And I am very discriminatory against words like the ones that they were saying in the video. I’m not about to hire you if your name is ‘Watermelondrea.’ It’s just not going to happen. I’m not going to hire you.”
Needless to say, the comments went viral with thousands of people asking how can a black woman with a strange name like Raven-Symoné be slamming other black females with non-traditional Christian/white names. Ashamed by the remark, Symoné’s own father and former manager, Christopher B. Pearman, was forced to share a lengthy post on Facebook where he explained that while he loves and supports his daughter, he is no longer responsible for her actions or her stupid views.
He revealed that she is an almost 30-year-old woman, who sometimes says absurd things or “dumb shit,” but deep down inside she is a wonderful human being. Feeling the wrath of black Twitter, (some of the comments geared towards Raven-Symoné are downright nasty and despicable), on Monday, she issued a half-apology. The star wrote:
My comments about discrimination have spun out of control.
I’d like to begin by saying that I was not attacking a specific race, but repeating a name that was said in a viral video which has received over 2 million likes.
I have been denied many jobs because of my skin color, body size, and age. Each time I was rejected, my self esteem was negatively effected, so i empathize with those who feel victimized by what I said. We would hope that when it comes to hiring, our names, physical appearance, sexual orientation, and age would never outweigh our qualifications, but often times, they do, thats the truth and it sucks. But I should not be part of the problem, I should be part of the solution.
As an equal opportunity employer, I have never discriminated against a name….even though I said I would, it’s not true. My comment was in poor taste. My lack of empathy towards name discrimination was uncalled for. I would also like to say that on Friday my account was hacked, those are not my words.
Below are few of the comments posted on social media about the Raven-Symoné drama.
You’re black and you don’t support black people. You’re a lesbian but do nothing for gay people. You have a platform that allows you the incredible opportunity to positively influence and inspire so many and you’ve brought nothing but shame. You might be collecting pay checks but the cost was your soul. What a waste you’ve turned out to be.
dumb thot.
You ignorant bitch. Your name doesn’t define you.
it still would of been a big deal, because her name is ghetto. It would of been a big deal because she’s discriminating against her own.
What are your thoughts on Raven-Symoné’s apology?
To My Dear Friends,There has been much talk today about my daughters comments on her show The View. People have been…
Posted by Christopher B. Pearman on Friday, October 9, 2015
