breakfast club is toxic masculinity on steroids

As far as I’m concerned, The Breakfast Club has long since (always?) been a platform for misogyny, homophobia, queerphobia, internalized anti-blackness, etc., a culture that is set largely by show’s main host Charlamagne Tha God. A problematic, self-hating jackass with a history of spending lot of time dehumanizing and disparaging black women and gay folk. A few examples that come to mind are that time he tried to force DJ Mister Cee out of the closet, routinely makes disrespectful, hyper-sexualized comments about women’s genitals, and most recently, Charlamagne was eagerly caping for white supremacy-in-training Tomi Lahren, using her as a standard for which black and latina women need to meet:

Would be dope if a young black or Hispanic “WOKE” woman used social media to create a Platform to be a voice like Tomi Lahren did.

— Charlamagne Tha God (@cthagod) December 7, 2016

Which, as many people like MTV’s “Decoded” host Franchesca Ramsey pointed out, was a standard WOC have been running circles around.

liiiiiike #MTVDecoded? https://t.co/wMhzQbKqiY https://t.co/JkRbCSNheh

— Franchesca Ramsey (@chescaleigh) December 7, 2016

not to mention Tomi didn’t create her platform. she was hired by the Blaze @cthagod

— Franchesca Ramsey (@chescaleigh) December 7, 2016

meanwhile myself, @kat_blaque & others have been writing and producing content on YouTube for YEARS. for me, 11 @cthagod

— Franchesca Ramsey (@chescaleigh) December 7, 2016

as for Latina voices @AliciaMenendez has an awesome show on @Fusion & crushes social justice issues @cthagod

— Franchesca Ramsey (@chescaleigh) December 7, 2016

point is WOC like @crissles @msjwilly @dopequeenpheebs & more have been making content/platforms around social justice for awhile @cthagod

— Franchesca Ramsey (@chescaleigh) December 7, 2016

WOC have the added hurdle of racism & sexism when it comes to getting our voices heard in media @cthagod

— Franchesca Ramsey (@chescaleigh) December 7, 2016

women like Tomi get ahead largely because they’re in a “digestible” package, thus the danger in what she’s saying is glossed over @cthagod

— Franchesca Ramsey (@chescaleigh) December 7, 2016

how could I forget @janetmock!? show on MSNBC & just produced Trans List doc for HBO. woke WOC media personalities exist! @cthagod

— Franchesca Ramsey (@chescaleigh) December 7, 2016

where are our voices? right here. but we need help being uplifted rather rhetorically asking why we don’t exist @cthagod

— Franchesca Ramsey (@chescaleigh) December 7, 2016

Just last week, rapper Rick Ross went on air to say that he’d never sign a “female rapper” to MMG because “I always thought that like I would end up fucking the female rapper [and then] fucking the business up I’m so focused on my business. I gotta be honest with you. You know, she looking good and I’m spending so much money on the photoshoots…I gotta fuck a couple times.”

What? The implications of Ross’ expressed entitlement to the bodies of women and the dehumanization evident in believing that female artists would be charged a sexual harassment tax where she is required to let the boss “fuck a couple time.” Ross issued an apology a few days later, but who fucking care.

As disgusting as these comments are, what’s just as shitty is that the show’s hosts continue to enable and foster an environment where misogyny and abuse are acceptable rhetoric. An environment where people aren’t even surprised to hear a guest make an argument for murdering transwomen. That’s the kind of show The Breakfast Club is.