2piece

4y

Donald isn’t black?

internet buddy

4y

I think Fernando didn't pay up because he felt Al disrespected him mainly by ruining Farnando's magical black guy story, and making jokes about a black ghost nutting on him. Although, the story Fanando was trying to tell was not cool. One of his friends at the table started the ghost s***joke, which he seemingly did because of the awkward vibe. This in turn lead Al to keep going with it. Arguably, Al goes too far, but I don't think so considering the awkard social setting, and him being the only black man there. It speaks to Al's personality that he rejects the unspoken social status of himself compared to an old white billionaire. From Fernando's tone and body language he seems to be become insulted over Al's refusal to recognise the power dynamic between the two of them. When Al starts going further on about Fernando f***ing the ghost, Fernando shows that he doesnt want this to be made fun of by saying it was "nothing physical". Al doesn't care about this social cue, which probably hasn't happened often for Fernando.

There's an easy Frantz Fanon-reading, in which Al repeats the old rich white slaver's reduction of the black man as a purely sexual animal existing only be bred. Though, Al doesn't sugarcoat it and instead of continuing Fernando's friend's idea of him f***ing the ghost Al makes the ghost f*** him, basically saying: you are scared of the black man f***ing/cumming on you. You are scared of the ghost having power instead of just being a prop in your story.

The reduction of the black man to a sexual being is connected to other forms of western white reductions of culture, which is more socially acceptable, albeit just as flawed. One such form is orientalism, which is the west looking at the world from only its own perspective, claiming to be the most rational, most secularized, most modern etc. We look at the rest of the world as opposite to this, and it has spilled into the way white people look at, talk about and represent non-white people. Not only do we culturally look at people, who are living in other countries like this, but also at those who live side by side with us within the west. A common trope is one about non-western culture having some sort of inate spirtuality, which they are more in tune with. This form of fetishization of culture gives us, among many others, the trope of the magical black man. This is basically the type of cliché bullshit Fernando is regurgitating to Al. When Al flips it he makes this embarrassingly obvious. Fernando's narrative seems to be constructed to purposely start out sounding like another trope; robbery of a vulnerable white home by a violent black man, but instead turn into a magical tale of Fernando's bond between himself and a black spirit. Al spoils this completely, and Fernando then promtly reminds Al, which of the two of them has the most power. I think Fernando attempts to humiliate Al for daring to speak out of turn after Fernando bestowed him with the honor of a seat at the table, and this great "black" story.

Fernando's passive state in his last scene, as he lays in his bed and pretends Al isnt there, is Fernando trying to ignore that Al exposed his s*** story as being anything but "beyond race", but in fact a story with some very racist undertones.

I get the impression that Fernando hasn't met a black man like Al before. I'm imaging Fernando have told this story many times before, and I suppose the black guests he told it to were expected to acknowledge it and express their wonder at his spiritual encounter with a wet black ghost, which he first thought was there to rob him, but instead "cleansed" him, like a sort of ointment.

Fernando must know that by not paying Al he did something clearly disrespectful, which could easily be seen as very racist by his "oh so racially sensitive" peers, but he probably didn't expect Al to make a big deal out of it, 'cus again Fernando is most likely used to flexing his power in a passive-aggressive way, with no objections.

Noteworthy also is the fact that the white saviour Socks, Will (who "fucking hates racialization" and even leaves his fiance over her "racisme" toward Darius) and all the other explicitly "non-racist" white people at the party, all stay silent when it comes to what Fernando does to Al. They were so quick to even add embellishments to what MK said to Darius, eventhough Darius expressed that it didnt happen like that and he wasnt bother by it. All these people carefully hid their objections to Fernando's treatment of Al. Despite of Al's clearly visible rage, nobody came to his aid. The last shot of the episode with MK crying on the sidewalk is heartbreaking. Even more so contrasted with the knowledge that Fernando would never be put in such a position.

Fernanado welshing on the bet with Al can be viewed in the light of the very first scene of the 3rd season. The tale of the lake that once was a "self-governing black town", as told by the "redneck". The relationship between Al and Fernando is the same as that of the black people, who "paid to be white" and the government, who didn't even see them as people, and intentionally destroyed their town. Fernando's disregard of honoring his bet is him not acknowledging Al's existence and right to a fair treatment. Obviously, Fernando has the money to give, so it's about the power to mistreat Al. This blatant disregard of Al's personhood mirrors the government's disregard of the people, who lived in the town they flooded and made a lake, and it seems to be the underlying theme of this season. Al has become rich, important, a somebody, but he is now experiencing the undercurrent of racism inherent to high society. In the culture of the rich west there is a constant reminder of otherness as opposed to "the normal"/whiteness. Race is a recurring theme among the white people at the party, but their well-meaning gestures seems so shallow, when you know there's always a dam, that is ready to be openend. And behind it a big body of water ready to drown anyone who thinks they have paid enough be treated white.

9thWonderful

4y

Damn they left bae on the side of the road

DONNIE BAHAMA

4y

🚀🚀🚀

https://www.instagram.com/jasmine_leung_pro/?hl=en

DONNIE BAHAMA

4y

🚀🚀🚀

https://www.instagram.com/jasmine_leung_pro/?hl=en

DONNIE BAHAMA

4y

🚀🚀🚀

https://www.instagram.com/jasmine_leung_pro/?hl=en

allmygirlsdoyoga

4y

Tf is up with Van

Sublimenero

4y

Next episode looks to be about reparations.

cotton

4y

He was tryna show her he can finally take care of her now and she curved it.

Damn.

ThomFork

4y

It's also really hard to have your ex's mother confide in you you they're worried about their daughter.

When he was clearly super nervous and she tried to tell him she was okay.

ThomFork

4y

Reparations paid by individuals instead of the state?

This gonna get touchy and hilarious

WRU

4y

s3 van definitely mirrors s1 earn and vice versa

except folks treated s1 earn as a relatable underachieving protagonist, but now treat van as a weirdo and unnecessary character