Tyler Perry is a pillar of hope in the Black community.
Many will fight me on that, arguing that he’s actually harmful to Black people for a slew of reasons: that his productions play to the white gaze and are modern forms of minstrelsy, that he only shows Black people in one light. The list goes on.
After watching just about every Tyler Perry movie and play these past 15 or so years, I see and understand the legitimacy of those perspectives, and yet, I stand by my initial statement.
His speech at Sunday night’s BET Awards, where he received the 2019 Ultimate Icon award, was all about Black empowerment, cementing his position as a positive influence within our community.
The beginning of the speech detailed significant moments from his childhood that, he said, were a “master class” in preparing him for his future. Perry recalled witnessing the bonds between his mother and her friends, who were “smart,” “powerful” Black women with “stories to tell;” walking past pimps and prostitutes to get to school; and helping the local candy man cross the street.
The major theme of Perry’s 41/2-minute sermon-esque talk perfectly summarized the guiding force of his career: to “help somebody cross.”
Perry has spent the entirety of his career being intentional about creating opportunities and offering aspiration for Black people. Whether it was hiring celebrities like Taraji P. Henson, Viola Davis and Idris Elba when they struggled to get jobs in mainstream Hollywood, or opening his studio in one of the poorest Black neighborhoods in Atlanta, “so that young Black kids could see that a Black man did that, and they can do it too.”
“While you’re fighting for a seat at the table, I’ll be down in Atlanta building my own,” he later said.
One of the other critical elements to Perry being a pillar within the community is that he offers us both sides of the representation coin.
Representation isn’t just about who you can be, but about affirming who you already are. Media storytelling has the ability to show those in an audience versions of themselves and their lived experiences in a way that can make people feel seen and supported in their given reality.
Perry has created space in his work for real-life Black people who don’t live like the Huxtables, or the Johnsons in “Black-ish,” to see elements of their reality portrayed in major media. He brings dignity to these depictions of real life that often involve struggle and hardship, and makes them a valid lived experience for those who actually navigate similar situations. Black people whose lives are similar to those of Perry’s characters deserve to see themselves and aspects of their lived truth played out.
At the end of his speech, before fiercely exhorting the audience to “own your stuff, own your business, own your way,” championing the necessity of Black business ownership, Perry said, “Rather than being an icon, I want to be an inspiration.”
You may not agree with the end product of his films, but what cannot be dismissed is the impact Perry has had on uplifting the culture. And for that, I say he deserves his flowers.
Twitter @christenadot_