One of the many reboots being made in Hollywood is the classic comedy hit from the early ‘90s "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air," streaming on Peacock now as "Bel-Air." Currently in its second season, "Bel-Air" is now a drama instead of a comedy and is absolutely nothing like the original.
For example, happy-go-lucky Carlton, who was famous for his cheesy dance moves, is now a recovering drug addict. There’s also a woke, CRT (critical race theory) storyline. But the biggest change of all is youngest Banks daughter Ashley (Akira Akbar), who is now a lesbian. In episode 6, Baggage,” Ashley’s mom Vivian (Cassandra Freeman) finds her and her male friend Eli (Michael Govan Hackett) alone in Ashley’s bedroom.
Ashley tells her mom it’s okay he’s there, because he’s non-binary and uses he/they pronouns. Therefore, “they’re not really a boy,” which Vivian accepts as perfectly okay, albeit with seeming hesitation:
In episode 8, “Gimme a Break,” Vivian is taking Ashley and Eli to the pool at their country club. When Ashley’s father Phil (Adrian Holmes) sees the two of them laughing together as they’re preparing to leave, he becomes concerned about how short and tight her skirt is and how “slick” Eli appears to be.
Phil is confused and remarks to Vivian that he thought Ashley was “into girls.” He asks, “What, is it boys now?” Vivian assures him that Eli has a boyfriend, so all is well:
Phew! Close call there, Phil! But, don’t you worry. Your daughter’s still a lesbian and her chummy male friend is gay! Isn’t that a relief?
My how times have changed! I guess now that we’re in the 2020s, boys in a girl’s bedroom can be excused with a simple pronoun change, gender identity confusion and claims of being gay from either child.
That couldn’t possibly lead to kids lying just to get their boyfriend or girlfriend into their bedroom, right? Let’s just trust them and hope for the best in the name of progress. #eyeroll
There was also a CRT storyline about Ashley’s black teacher being fired because the school was “caving to a few white parents who are upset with her,” and that “All she's guilty of is exposing her students to books that are honest about race, sexuality, and American history.”
The books were outside of the approved curriculum and the teacher had been warned repeatedly to stop violating the rule, but she refused to comply. Ashley and her family plan a huge walkout protest, which they call a “blackout,” over the firing, and the protest chant becomes, “Black teachers matter.”
Two of the books recommended were "The Revolution Has Come: Black Power, Gender and the Black Panther Party in Oakland" by Robyn C. Spencer and "I'm Still Here: Black Dignity in a World Made for Whiteness" by Austin Channing Brown. The latter was chosen as a Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick, which is pretty sad given that the first chapter is titled, “White People are Exhausting.”
Bookclubchat.com shared this description and excerpt:
In talking about history, Austin discusses about the problem with history education. A key area that she points out is how teachers try to change the narrative that the Civil War wasn’t really about slavery and say instead, that it was really about “states’ rights.” So (sic) I was told this in a high school history class (sic) and I vividly remember we were all confused and pushed back—but the teacher wouldn’t budge. Sorry, teacher, you’re wrong; the Civil War was about slavery. It’s chilling to think how history was (and still is) manipulated to serve an agenda in an effort to diminish the experiences of black people in this country.
There’s a reason there was so much backlash against CRT. It's a good thing even black parents strongly protested it at school board meetings across the country, unlike these fictional characters staging a protest in favor of it.
When even a white reader’s takeaway is that there’s some sort of secret conspiracy and concerted “effort to diminish the experiences of black people in this country,” that becomes a dangerous message to young, impressionable students. It’s also race-baiting at its finest and only serves to widen the racial divide, promoting anger and hatred between races.
Can we please just have the fun, lighthearted version of this show back instead of this woke, heavy reboot? I think most people would prefer their entertainment without the leftist political propaganda.
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