Photo: (Facebook)
Yesterday morning, Franchesca Leigh Ramsey, the brilliant young woman behind the Beyonce parody “Student Loan Countdown” and the popular Chescalocs YouTube channel, dropped “S*** White Girls Say…to Black Girls” on the interwebz.
And BOOM, she instantly blew up the web (literally 1.5 million views, y'all) with an open dialogue about race, women, and yes, hair, that was not only hilarious, but hella honest. 8,000 comments later -- and counting on YouTube alone -- it was clear that this ish had hit a nerve. The vid is funny as crap -- no doubt -- but our black girlfriends were throwing out their own “Oh no she didn’t just touch my hair without even asking!” experiences while white girls like me are cringing and thinking, “Oh no, did I?”
And then there are those peeps accusing Franchesca of being racist and stereotypical in her portrayal of white girls -- so needless to say, the debate has been heating up ever since she hit upload.
That's why Jovi, my closest black girlfriend and I decided to team up for an Act exclusive interview that would find out just what Franchesca had in mind when she donned that blonde wig and uttered those first funny/sad-cuz-it's-true words: “Not to be racist but…”
We thought it was fitting to give Franchesca questions from both a white and black girl’s perspective – and in return, she doesn’t hold back in giving us the lowdown. Check out the full interview below.
BF: How diverse is your friend group, now and when you were growing up? Did your white girlfriends help you write this? What do they think about this video?
My group of friends is pretty diverse. As a kid I grew up in the suburbs of South Florida and went to a predominately white Catholic School and then onto a mixed magnet school for middle and high school. Growing up my white friends always outnumbered my black friends. The black kids made fun of me and those that didn't were just like me. But truthfully with the exception of a few close friends from childhood and college, most of my black friends today I met online! My white friends "helped" me in the sense that many of the lines were direct quotes from them. The response from my friends has been awesome. Everyone loves it and is excited about it going viral. But I think some are a little embarrassed because they can see themselves in it. I had one friend even text me, "I feel like that video was inspired by me" to which I replied, "You're my muse."
JZ: What inspired you to make this video? Can you share some of the incidents that you pulled from to make it?
When I was home for Christmas this past December I went to my high school's holiday reunion party. I got to see lots of old friends I haven't talked to in years, many of which I only keep touch with online. But what struck me most about the evening was that as the night went on and people got a little drunker (I was the DD that night so I was sober) people started asking me about my hair and touching it without asking me.
At one point I had 5 friends (people I've known for over 10 years and have grown up with) complimenting my "weave" while simultaneously picking at and pruning me. When I got upset that they would assume my hair was a weave, suddenly I was made to feel like the bad guy. "Wooooa! why are you overreacting!? It's a compliment!" Granted, they were pretty drunk, and I know they didn't mean any harm, but I just couldn't believe that friends that have SEEN my locs evolve over the past 8 years and have never known me to wear a weave, would just assume my hair wasn't real. And then assume that because we're friends they could pet me like a dog.
Strangers are one thing, but when it's your friends it can be kinda hurtful. And even more so that when I told them I was bothered by it they didn't seem to understand why. After that I started thinking about all the random things that have been said to me about race and made a list in my iPhone and thus the video was born!
BF: What’s the ultimate goal of the video? Is this video intended to poke fun, educate or both? Is it like a PSA for white girls to give us the heads up that we need to stop saying stuff like this? (Yeah, I’m listening. Eeeek.)
It's definitely both. I love comedy but I think it's more of a challenge and more impactful to make videos with a message. For example, I did a video for national HIV testing day where I dressed up as Lil Wayne and rapped about the importance of safe sex and a talking Barbie video (tied in with Nicki Minaj for relevancy sake) about the sexualized nature of girl's toys. Did the YouTube audience always get it? No. People called me a hater and this and a that, but most of my subscribers got it. So that's how I feel about this video. Yes, I wanted it to be funny and yes, I wanted it to go viral. But I wanted to do something that was different and also made a sensitive topic into something we could talk about.
JZ: Have you been surprised by the response, both positive and negative? What do you have to say to the haters?
I've been really surprised. I had no idea it was grow so quickly. I posted around 6 am after a sleepless night filled with editing and computer issues. I didn't expect to get to work and have over 500 emails and even more Twitter mentions. It's been crazy. To quote my next video "S*** Black Girls say when people accuse them of being racist", "Excuse me? My fiancée is white!"
JZ: What’s the fine line (if there is one) between educating a misguided soul to the ways of awesome black woman-ness, and ignoring an underlying racist comment? How have you managed this in the past?
There's a very fine line. You have to be so careful because more often than not, people just don't know that what they're saying is offensive. And in some ways, you can't really fault them for that. Most of the times those cringe worthy comments are from people I know, love and respect. Should I be mad at them for being sheltered? No. Should I be annoyed when they violate social norms and put their hands on my head? Yes. For me, I try to keep things in perspective and examine the context before I choose how to react.
Over the years I've found that it's easiest to use comedy to diffuse some of those awkward moments. If it's a friend assuming my hair is a weave, I explain that it's not and that contrary to popular belief, it's possible for black women to have naturally long hair. Or, on the extreme end, if someone starts telling N-word jokes around me (which has happened before) I shut them down immediately. I explain that word makes everyone sound ignorant and that black people's use does not give them a pass.
When it comes to strangers I'm not as forgiving because it's just plain rude no matter how you look at it. I usually end up rolling my eyes (way to perpetuate those stereotypes Fran!) and walking away. Maybe next time I'll give them my card and direct them to watch "S*** white girls say..."
JZ: Have you noticed your YouTube audience’s evolving education re: race? How can we continue this dialogue?
I've gotten some awesome comments from viewers saying they saw themselves in my video and are going to make a more conscious effort to choose their words carefully when discussing race with their friends. On the other side of that, I've gotten countless comments from black women and men who've had these things said to them and felt like they were the only ones going through it. Many of them said they were excited to show the video to their white friends and use it as a conversation starter. So I think if any of the topics in the video resonate with you, no matter what side you're on, you should see it as way to educate yourself on how you speak to other people and how you express your feelings when you feel uncomfortable with something someone has said. The best way to continue that dialogue is to just try to be open minded and accepting because race is a super touchy subject, especially when friends are involved.
Additional reporting of this story by Jovian Zayne
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