Raven-Symoné Rips Black Names, But Forgot About Her Own

By JAMILAH LEMIEUX

A person who is both legally and professionally known as "Raven-Symoné" used her enviable platform as a co-host on ABC's The View to rail against Black names.

We could honestly stop talking right here, because the story--and the jokes--write themselves. Her name is Raven hyphen alternate spelling of "Simone," complete with what could be considered a gratuitous accent mark (it does not change the pronunciation of "Symone/Simone," it is there for decoration; she essentially has the equivalent of plastic furniture covers at the end of her name,) and yet she feels compelled to punch down at those who also have names that are also Black as a dice game at a church fish fry, but may not have hit the faux French mark as well as her own. Only a blindfolded person with no sense of smell being asked to hold a plate of meat and walk into a den full of dogs could match her lack of self-awareness.

How dare you, Raven hyphen alternate spelling of "Simone?" Sitting there with a head full of colorful weave, the same sort of hair that was "ghetto," "tacky," "low-class" and "unacceptable" until it made it's way until the pages of mainstream fashion magazines?

And using "Watermelonandrea" as your example, playing off the same racist language used by people who have done us so much harm? Olivia Kendall would never.

Moment of honesty: I won't pretend that I always had the best attitude about what are often called "'hood" or "ghetto" names. When I was younger, I thought names like "Tamika" and "Keisha" were fine and pretty, but I didn't much care for those that had harder consonant sounds and apostrophes. And I maintain that prior to the UPN show, "Moesha" wasn't anyone's name and it sounded like what a White TV writer thought a Black girl's name would be (and her daddy's flat-top did not match her name. This makes sense if you think about it.) That's not to say I'm a big fan of names that we typically think of as super European either; my siblings and I have African names and I thought that was the way to go for all of us.

Well, actually, though "Jamilah" is considered to be a Swahili name, it's origins are Arabic and it is extremely common in Islamic countries. So is my daughter's name, Naima. So now we are two generations deep into non-Muslim women carrying Muslim names; who on Earth would I be to shame someone who created a name for her own child? Isn't that part of our polyglot African-American Blackness, this ability to create culture on the fly and to take what we can find of our African roots and make it into something that is uniquely ours?

The whole world is trying to tear us apart and you want to discount the value of some other Black person because she, TOO, has a Black name, Raven hyphen alternate spelling of "Simone?" You got the nerve. Meanwhile, even White folks are naming their kids things like "Raekwon," "Dapper" and "Hummincomingatcha" these days, but okay.

But even before I came to fully embrace the importance of these names and our ability to name ourselves as we see fit, I always understood that behind a "La," "Sha" or "Ty" name was my brother or sister. What would posses a Black person to say "I'm not going to hire someone with a name like that," when so much greatness has come from people with names like that? Wasn't Raven hyphen alternate spelling of "Simone" just on Empire with Jussie Smollett, Taraji P. Henson and the artist formerly known as Terrence Dashon Howard? Didn't she bounce on the knee of Phylicia Rashad? Didn't a good chunk of her fortune come from playing Galleria Garabaldi in The Cheetah Girls franchise? And isn't' she sitting across the damn table from Whoopi "EGOT" Goldberg?

Also: Raven hyphen alternate spelling of "Simone's" full name is Raven-Symoné Christina Pearman...why not go by "Christina?" Could it be that her parents saw that her unique name could make her stand out in the entertainment industry? That it matched that buoyant personality she had as a child? We're about the same age and I have to say, I always thought she was fantastic; so incredibly beautiful and talented. What a sad disappointment she has become at nearly 30.

We can't have a hierarchy of Black names. You are either with your family, or you aren't. Being named "Naima" or "Aaliyah," "Asha," or "Imani," doesn't make you better or more sophisticated or more African than someone named "Shatasha," and the people who are dumping Shatasha's resume in the trash because of her name are happy to throw yours in there too, boo. And when a Black Becky Jane shows up in person, her resume just might be joining them. Name your kids (or yourself) what you see fit, but don't write off your own people because you don't like what they ask the world to call them.

If Waterme lonandrea can't find work as Raven hyphen alternate spelling of "Simone's" personal assistant, she can come work for me. It won't pay as much, but at least she won't have to deal with an insufferable sense of self-loathing and anti-Black pathology in her boss's every word.

Jamilah-Asali Isoké Lemieux is EBONY Magazine's Senior Editor. Her colleagues include women named Kierna, Lynnette, Rema, Ericka, Kyra, Najja, Tia, Genese, Marielle, LaToya and Shantell, all of whom are Black and quite happy about it.

Raven-Symone Shocker: Harriet Tubman Shouldn’t Be On $20 Bill — ‘I Don’t Like That Idea’

America wants Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill…but Raven-Symone does not! While guest hosting ‘The View’ on May 13, the former Disney star shockingly explained why she wouldn’t want to see the heroic abolitionist on American currency — and people are outraged!

Sorry, Harriet Tubman, but according to Raven-Symone, you do NOT deserve to be on the $20 bill. While discussing a new petition to make American currency less white and male, and replace Andrew Jackson on the bill, Raven shared a shocking opinion — she does not agree with American voters’ decision that Harriet should be the $20’s new face. Check out some viewers’ outraged reactions!

Raven-Symone On Harriet Tubman’s $20 Bill: She Shouldn’t Be On It

“No offense to everyone who’s going to be mad at me for saying this, I don’t like that idea,” Raven said on The View, regarding the Harriet Tubman decision. “I don’t like it. I think we need to move a little bit more forward. I understand, let me just preface, I understand the history, I was taught. I’m in that culture. There’s also Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt…and I personally would’ve chosen Rosa Parks.”

Whoa, girl, why are you hating on Harriet?! Both she and Rosa made major, heroic changes and would be great representatives of our history on the $20 bill. But, according to Raven, we’re too far removed from Harriet’s time, and she wants to see someone more current grace the bill.

“I would’ve chosen someone who is closer to the progression that we’re doing now, and I know you have to understand history so you don’t repeat it, but that doesn’t really happen in our world because we still repeat history of hating other cultures over and over again,” she explained. “I would’ve chosen a different one, no offense.”

Uh…kind of confusing? But everyone’s entitled to their own opinion, I guess? However, many were outraged over Raven’s comments, and took to Twitter to blast her for it.

WE’RE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MONSTER THAT IS RAVEN-SYMONÉ

According to published reports, Raven Symone might be getting a permanent spot on ABC’s “The View,” and honestly, it’s not a bad idea.

No, really.

As reported here by Jazmine Denise Rogers: “Viewers may be cringing anytime Raven-Symoné opens her mouth, but apparently, there are folks who want the former child star to become a permanent fixture on the daytime TV series. Among the select few who are hopeful that this happens is veteran “View” host Whoopi Goldberg.

“We love saying it, but Raven and Michelle will be back tomorrow,” Goldberg said. “We’re trying to make it permanent, so write in to everybody.”

Raven and Michelle Collins have appeared as guest co-hosts on the talk show over a dozen times since March and according to a “Page Six” source, ABC executives are interested in bringing the 29-year-old on full-time.

“She was interesting and provocative,” the ABC insider said. “Raven would be great as a regular host.”

I bet she would be great because she already has been great — for the ratings at least.

If you recall, the ladies of “The View” had been getting their wigs snatched by CBS’ “The Talk.” As reported earlier this year by The Hollywood Reporter, “The new Disney-ABC Television Group president officially starts Feb. 1, and one of his first tough decisions is what to do with the flagging round table show ‘The View’….

“A hastily executed reboot in the summer has failed to reverse the show’s ratings fortune: ‘The View’ is flat year-over-year among total viewers and down 9 percent among its target audience of women 25-to-54. And CBS’ ‘The Talk’ bested ‘The View’ among total viewers for the first time during the week of Jan. 12, pulling in 2.95 million viewers compared with ‘The View’s’ 2.88 million.”

Symone began guest co-hosting for “The View” in March of this year. And according to TV By The Numbers during the time she had been featured on the program, ABC’s long standing all-woman talk show “out delivered” their CBS counterpart, increasing its week-to-week total viewer lead over the ‘The Talk’ by 50 percent in the first rating quarter alone. As the site reports, the show, which has averaged 2.722 million total viewers, now leads the ‘The Talk’ in all key demos including women ages 25 to 54 and women ages 18 to 49 years old.

So what makes Symone so appealing? Well, we know it isn’t her intellect. I won’t rehash all the dumb things she has said both on and off the show, as Iva Anthony has already done a wonderful job compiling a list of all the times she has put her foot into her mouth. But the truth is what makes Symone so attractive, in short, is us.

Yup, that’s right: we the people are responsible for the rise of Symone.

You see, regardless of how dumb (or even smart) you think she is or how beneficial her opinions are to public discourse in this country, the point is that we keep talking about everything she says. I can’t tell you how many posts there have been across social media, and the Black blogosphere in particular, expressing some sort of “outrage” at what Symone has said. And I’m not just talking about the run-of-the-mill busybodies looking for something, or even someone, to gossip about. I’m talking about smart people with multiple degrees and all sorts of accolades writing long dissertation-worthy essays to rebuke the logic of someone whose greatest insight has been playing a clairvoyant on “That’s So Raven.”

Symone’s opinions matter because we have shown through our engagement that they matter. And the ABC executives have likely cued in on that. They probably have paid close attention to all the tweets on Twitter, blogs post and editorials, eyes rolls and sucked teeth declaring how much we can’t stand her, and then checked those reactions against the Nielsen ratings like, “nope. They may not like what she has to say, but they sure as hell keep tuning in to hear what she will say next.”

So, if you really want Raven-Symoné to go away, just stop talking about her. Please.

Personally, I am kind of indifferent to Symone and her antics – and I do feel that much of what she says is just a matter of creating shenanigans. In some ways, I actually feel sorry for her.  I remember a few years back Symone had gotten really into her feelings on 106 & Park about her fledging musical endeavors. She was supposed to be on the show promoting her fifth studio album and yet, came off as quite snippy to the studio audience for fake applauding their support for the project.

In all honestly, there seems to be some unresolved hurt inside of Symone about the trajectory of her career, particularly among Black audiences — and Hollywood in general — who moved on from her when she stopped being cute little ol’ Olivia. And just like Stacey Dash, she is willing to say anything particularly antagonistic to, and about, Black people because deep down, she is just not happy. Maybe being on television again will do her some good. And then she can find her happiness again and leave Black people alone. If not, there is always a Negro Wake-Up Call waiting for her around the corner…

Raven-Symone Defends TV Host Who Compared Michelle Obama to Apes: Watch

Raven-Symone has dropped herself right in it.

The Empire actor and former Cheetah Girl is now backpeddaling after she came out in support of Univision host Rodner Figueroa, who was sacked after making a crack about Michelle Obama looking like a big ape.

Appearing as a guest host on The View on Monday, Symone managed to defend the indefensible when she argued that Figueroa had a valid point, and said "some people look like animals."

Raven-Symone Talks 'Empire's' Baby Mama Drama

Figueroa was dismissed from his position on El Gordo y la Flaca after he said the First Lady "looks like she's from the cast of Planet of the Apes, the movie." When his fellow hosts confronted him, he was unrepentant, saying: "But it is true."

As the backlash against him swelled, Figueroa issued an apology letter stating that he was "not racist in any way." His act of contrition didn't win over his employers.

Actor and View co-host Rosie Perez led the conversation on Figueroa's comments. "A lot of Latin people recognize the fact that we do have African blood in us. A lot of them do not want to recognize that fact, and that's where this stems from," she said on Monday's show. "There is a secret in the Latin community, specifically the Caribbean, South American, Central American, Latin community, that they are very racist," she added. "They never want to be in the same group as black people. And it's sad. It's very, very sad. And he did say Michelle Obama looks like a cast member of the Planet of the Apes."

Raven-Symone to Oprah: 'I'm Tired of Being Labeled' 

Symone stepped in: "Was he saying it racist-like? Because, he said that he voted for her later and I don't think he was saying it racist." Perez was gobsmacked. "Oh, please! That's like saying 'I'm not a racist, I have black friends.' I'm sorry, that's racist."

After some back and forth with the hosts, Symone dropped a clanger when she said, "Michelle, don't fire me from this right now, but some people look like animals. Is that rude? I look like a bird! So can I be mad if somebody calls me Toucan Sam?" Whoopi Goldberg interjected, "I'd be mad if someone called you Toucan Sam. C'mon." It all happens in the clip below from 8:40 mins.

Symone has since taken to Twitter to try explain her comments -- and quell the mounting backlash. "Some comments are rude, some are disrespectful, and some are racist. Try to not exchange one for the other," she tweeted. She followed up with: "My opinion/comments arn't based off race, that doesn't mean i'm trying to be a different race all together. I love OUR history, family...." She sounded off with "We have Irish Culture, African Culture, Asian Culture, Indian Culture Many more running through the veins of AMERICA! Come on yung peeps." 

Watch: Raven-Symoné stuns Whoopi Goldberg with racial remarks

Raven-Symoné left co-host Whoopi Goldberg speechless Friday on "The View" as she admitted she wouldn't hire someone with a "ghetto black name."

The "View" hosts discussed a study that found Americans make racist assumptions based on names, which was followed by a YouTube video in which kids shared "ghetto black names."

"Just to bring it back, can we take back 'racist' and say 'discriminatory,' because I think that's a better word," Raven-Symoné started off.

Goldberg nodded in agreement. "It's a much better word."

If only Raven-Symoné had stopped there.

The former Disney star quickly added, "And I am very discriminatory against words like the ones they were saying in those names. I'm not about to hire you if your name is Watermelondrea. It's just not going to happen. I'm not going to hire you."

Actress Raven-Symone attends TrevorLIVE New York to benefit The Trevor Project at the Marriott Marquis on Monday, June 15, 2015, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)

Goldberg looked stunned. She put her hands on her chest and looked away.

We feel for you, Whoopi. It's rather hard to believe a woman named after a bird would admit to name discrimination. And plenty of Twitter users skewered Raven-Symoné for her comment.

YouTube personality and comedian Kingsley chimed in with one of the most favorited tweets: "How is Raven-Symoné against 'ghetto' names when she has lived 29 years with an accent mark that is never utilized? :-/"

Ann Tatko-Peterson provides celebrity commentary for the Bay Area News Group. Follow her at twitter.com/atatkopeterson.

Why Crazy-Ass Raven-Symoné Will Save ‘The View’

Raven-Symoné may be absolutely insane. She may be woefully uninformed. But she’s a freaking hoot. She’s the perfect hire to save a struggling, ratings-starved ‘View.’

Raven-Symoné, former child star and human manifestation of the Twitter trending topic, was officially hired as the fourth co-host of The View, making official a gig she’s been unofficially campaigning for regularly over the past year.

Seated next to an Oscar-winning Hollywood trailblazer (Whoopi Goldberg), a former Republican strategist (Nicolle Wallace), and a Latino icon and renowned activist (Rosie Perez), Symoné has been the salt, sugar, and spice making an otherwise woefully bland and mushy morning dish the hot breakfast ticket in morning TV.

She’s made headlines for speaking absolute nonsense—with great and admirable confidence—on a wide array of topics over the past few months. She’s angered some, amused others, and, most importantly, garnered the attention of all.

But you know what? Speaking freely (and occasionally like a lunatic) is her job. Now it’s a daily one. And boy is she good at it.

If industry whispers, gossip rag reports, and a long and damning Vanity Fairexposé histrionically titled “The View’s Epic Fight for Survival” are to be believed, Barbara Walter’s darling morning chat program is struggling. Its ratings have been dreadful, its buzz even worse, and talent shakeups—Rosie O’Donnell’s back! Now she’s leaving! Rosie Perez is fired! Haha, just kidding!—have nearly suffocated any positive sentiment towards the show.

All of this while rivals The Talk and The Chew and various other innocuously named talk shows featuring four hosts clucking at each other for an hour have been surpassing the daytime stalwart in numbers and in audience interest.

Well, you know what? Wacky, controversial, and self-assured lunatic Raven-Symoné is exactly what the show needs to be saved.

Symoné’s hiring has been written on the wall for a while now. (If you watch The View on a daily basis—and there are at least dozens of you—you’ve seen Symoné co-hosting so often that you probably already assumed she’d been hired.)

More, if you’ve followed her return to the public eye over the past few years, especially with her headline-making interview with Oprah Winfrey in 2014, you may have had a vision, That’s So Raven-style, of Symoné’s inevitable future.

“Oh, girl, don’t set Twitter fire,” Winfrey warned when Symoné, discussing being a lesbian and black woman in America, said she didn’t want to be labeled because of her race or her sexuality. “I’m an American,” she said. “I’m not an African-American; I’m an American.”

Indeed, a Twitter inferno waged in the wake of her comments. And, especially since she began regularly guest-hosting The View, it has never really extinguished. Symoné has become a bit of a pyro in this regard. And The View has been happily fanning her flames, basking in the headlines and attention she’s been bringing the show.

It hinted at the unapologetic candor that’s defined her time on The View, often employed without a thought of its consequences. It hinted at an ideology and opinionated mindset that would be most definitely off-center and provocative, divisive and unusual, humorous even when ignorant, and occasionally intelligent and sometimes informed.

Still, even if not the smartest opinion, hers is always a valid one, and one useful for sparking conversation. And as they say, all publicity is good publicity.

Remember when that TV reporter joked that a makeup artist who transformed herself into Michelle Obama “looked like a monkey”? Most argued that the reporter was shamefully racist. Symoné, instead, immediately defended the reporter on The View. “I don’t think what he’s saying is racist,” she said. “Some people look like animals… Is that rude? I look like a bird.”

Words like “controversy” and “scandal” were thrown around as Symoné’s comments took off. And, just as importantly for the show’s producers, The Viewsuddenly catapulted itself to the center of this whole racist joke story.

Is she out of her mind? Does she have a point? Is she bad for the black community? Is she just simply progressive? People couldn’t stop debating Symoné. Some critics might say it’s irresponsible to give someone prone to controversial and maybe even offensive speech a platform like The View. Anyone who knows good TV, however, will say that Symoné was getting people talking—and that’s a great thing.

She ruffled feathers when she said that Harriet Tubman should not be on the $20 bill. She passionately insisted that stay-at-home moms get paid, which, you go girl! But also, by who? And in the grand tradition of Rosie O’Donnell, she is blissfully and almost uncomfortably vanity free in her penchant for confessional, like the time she confessed that she has been wearing Spanx since she was 14.

Sure, there’s shock value in such statements. But just as was the case with O’Donnell—maybe the best View co-host there ever was—there’s always value in these confessions, as they foster a relatability and intimate trust with the audience (something that yet can’t be said for Wallace and Perez) and cause people to think about our institutionalized values (such as body image and femininity) in different ways.

But unlike her other co-hosts—the more buttoned-up Wallace, the quivering Bambi Perez, and the you’ve-gotta-be-kidding-me-with-this-shit Goldberg—Symoné is not just conditioned, but game to handle the whiplash shifts in tone that a morning TV show requires with agility and enthusiasm.

“And that’s how we feel about ISIS. Coming up: We’ll show you how to make the perfect soufflé. And Jessie J performs!” It’s not every person that can handle the triviality of such high-low ambition. But Symoné thrives in it. And can do splits with Anthony Anderson, too!

Sure, Symoné can come off as misinformed and maybe even ignorant or sometimes delusional. But she stands her ground, unafraid to bicker a bit with her co-hosts who may differ in opinion. If there’s one thing we’ve learned from the very fact that Elisabeth Hasselbeck has a career in media, it’s that audiences love to watch people engage is fiery debates about insane opinions.

It’s undeniable, too, that—even though she insisted to Queen O that she wishes to not be labeled or defined by them—Symoné’s race and sexuality, and also her age, make her hiring a pointed decision and a big deal.

It signals where The View’s producers hope to drive the conversation, and how diverse and progressive they want that destination to be. It hints at a modicum of fun and youthful energy they hope to invigorate the show with. And it proves that its oh-so-brief experiment that started this season of The View failed.

O’Donnell, Wallace, and Perez were supposed to bring seriousness to the mornings. Conversations were supposed to be intelligent and meaningful, and we were supposed to appreciate that. After all, hadn’t we derided the show in recent years for its overdrive charge into batty asshattery?

It didn’t work.

Turns out, we didn’t know what we wanted. Sherri Shepherd and Jenny McCarthy were excised, but they took the circus with them. Like forlorn children, we’ve missed the clowns. The View producers have noticed our frowns, and they’re sending in the clowns to brighten our day again.