Black Weather Lady Fired Over Hair

So you see a headline like "Fired From TV For Explaining Black Hair," and the first thing you do (after clicking it, of course) is wonder, so someone must have been allDEAD HONKEY! right? Right? Sure, if you have the babelfish in your ear that translates really, really, really, ridiculously nice and patient and non-hostile-to-the-point-of-saintliness educational statements into thuggish Obama-style "jive." 

Hello, pretty meteorologist lady Rhonda Lee. What you doin'?

On Oct. 1, a viewer identified as Emmitt Vascocu wrote, "the black lady that does the news is a very nice lady.the only thing is she needs to wear a wig or grow some more hair. im not sure if she is a cancer patient. but still its not something myself that i think looks good on tv. what about letting someone a male have waist long hair do the news.what about that (cq)."

Lee replied the same day, "Hello Emmitt--I am the 'black lady' to which you are referring. I'm sorry you don't like my ethnic hair. And no I don't have cancer. I'm a non-smoking, 5'3, 121 lbs, 25 mile a week running, 37.5 year old woman, and I'm in perfectly healthy physical condition.

"I am very proud of my African-American ancestry which includes my hair. For your edification: traditionally our hair doesn't grow downward. It grows upward. Many Black women use strong straightening agents in order to achieve a more European grade of hair and that is their choice. However in my case I don't find it necessary. I'm very proud of who I am and the standard of beauty I display. Women come in all shapes, sizes, nationalities, and levels of beauty. Showing little girls that being comfortable in the skin and HAIR God gave me is my contribution to society. Little girls (and boys for that matter) need to see that what you look like isn't a reason to not achieve their goals.

"Conforming to one standard isn't what being American is about and I hope you can embrace that.

"Thank you for your comment and have a great weekend and thank for watching."

OH GOOD NOW WE ALL GET TO TALK ABOUT BLACK HAIR! We at Wonkette love talking about black hair, and how we think black ladies should wear their hair, but since only Jesse is black, we never actually talk about it out loud, because for some reason black ladies are not stopping us on the street and begging us to tell them what they should be doing with their hair. Which is on their heads. And for some reason they feel like they own it.

It is official Wonkette policy that the most beautiful way to wear black hair is in a magnificent Black Power Angela Davis Afro. The second most beautiful way to wear black hair is in a short crewcut, like Rhonda Lee's very fetching do. (This is most awesome with giant hoop earrings.) The third most beautiful way to wear black hair is bleached blonde, because punk and hell yeah. And black ladies wearing their hair straightened makes us kind of sad, because we do not want them to have to conform to European beauty ideals, and it seems like they have to work really really hard at it. But then, it is their hair, and we do not make a habit of going up to them and offering our hair advice, especially since our own hair is kind of ratty and it sucks.

Also, we forgot: dreads and braids are fabulous ways to wear black hair too!

Oh right, so what happened to Rhonda Lee after she so calmly and nicely educated this probably well-intentioned but idiot person?

Vascocu replied that Lee was right to be proud of who she is and that he is not a racist, but ". . . this world has . . . certain standerd (cq). if youve come from a world of being poor are you going to dress in rags?. . ."

Aw man. Then another person posted on the station's Myface something else that was way more stupid and racist, and without the presumable good intentions, and Lee responded to that too, and now she is fired.

That'll teach you, Rhonda Lee.

[ TheRoot ]