HERE.
>> IM NOT SCREAMING.
>> YOU ARE.
>> OH, MY GOD.
BRING IT DOWN.
YOU ARE.
>> YOUR WHITE FRAGILITY IS
KILLING ME RIGHT NOW.
>> I HAVE A HEARING PROBLEM.
>> DONT GO AFTER HER RACE.
WHY ARE YOU GETTING SO ANGRY?
>> NOW IM THE ANGRY BLACK
WOMAN.
>> YOURE AN ANGRY WOMAN RIGHT
NOW.
>> I NEVER REFERRED TO YOUR
COLOR, NOR WOULD I.
BECAUSE YOURE A WOMAN TO ME.
>> YOU DIDNT HAVE TO.
>> ALL RIGHT, REALITY TV JUST
GOT REAL, IN AN EFFORT TO RAMP
UP DIVERSITY, BRAVO THE REAL
HOUSEWIVES INTRODUCED THE FIRST
BLACK WOMAN IN THE NEW YORK CITY
CAST.
ENTER EBONI K. WILLIAMS, FILMING
FOR THE SHOWS 13th SEASON BEGAN
SHORTLY AFTER THE PROTESTS OF
LAST SUMMER, AND AS THE RACIAL
RECKONING SWEPT THE NATION.
FANS OF THE SHOW WATCHED A GROUP
OF UPPER CLASS WHITE WOMEN
RECKON WITH RACE ON A PERSONAL
LEVEL, LIKELY FOR THE FIRST TIME
IN THEIR LIVES.
JOINING ME NOW IS MY FRIEND,
EBONI K. WILLIAMS, HOST AND
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER OF "HOLDING
COURT WITH EBONI K. WILLIAMS"
AND A REAL HOUSEWIFE OF NEW YORK
CITY.
IM SO HAPPY TO HAVE YOU HERE.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US.
YOU AND I TALKED YESTERDAY.
WE MET WHEN YOU WERE AN ANCHOR
AT FOX.
YOU WERE ALWAYS SO SUPPORTIVE.
THANK YOU.
WE TALKED YESTERDAY ABOUT YOUR
ROLE ON THIS SHOW AND I HAVE TO
TELL YOU, I BINGE WATCHED A FEW
EPISODES.
ITS A LOT.
WHAT HAS YOUR EXPERIENCE BEEN
LIKE?
>> OH, TIFFANY, SO GREAT TO BE
WITH YOU, MY SISTER.
AND I APPRECIATE YOU AND IM SO
PROUD OF YOUR PLATFORM.
THE EXPERIENCE HAS BEEN AS
CHALLENGING AS ANY OF MY CAREER,
AND I SAY THAT, AS YOU JUST
GRACIOUSLY INTRODUCED ME, A
FORMER HOST AT FOX NEWS, IVE
BEEN A CORRESPONDENT AT CBS NEWS
AND WORKED AS A TRIAL ATTORNEY
IN CRIMINAL DEFENSE WORK AND
SOME OTHER THINGS IN MY CAREER.
AND THIS EXPERIENCE AS A REAL
HOUSEWIVES OF NEW YORK HAS BEEN
CHALLENGING, BUT IVE GOT TO
TELL YOU, IT HAS BEEN AS
IMPACTFUL, PROBABLY IN WAYS MORE
IMPACTFUL THAN ANY OF THE WORK
IVE BEEN BLESSED AND PRIVILEGED
TO DO.
>> I WATCHED THE HARLEM EPISODE,
AND I COULDNT LOOK AWAY.
I WILL SAY THAT.
SOME OF THE WOMEN SAY THINGS AND
I WONDER, DOES IT COME FROM A
PLACE OF IGNORANCE, LIKE YOURE
SAYING THIS BECAUSE YOU REALLY
DONT KNOW ANY BETTER, OR DO YOU
KNOW BETTER BUT THERES NEVER
REALLY BEEN A PERSON OF COLOR TO
CHECK YOU FOR SOME OF THESE
REMARKS?
WHAT DO YOU THINK, SINCE YOUVE
BEEN KIND OF IMMERSED IN THIS
SPACE WHERE YOU ARE THE ONLY?
>> YOU KNOW, IM NOT ENTIRELY
SURE, TIFFANY, WHERE IT COMES
FROM.
BUT WHAT I DO KNOW IS JUST LIS
TONG
LISTENING TO THAT INCREDIBLE
CONVERSATION YOU JUST HAD, I
ALSO CONSIDER MYSELF A BLACK
WOMAN WITH EXTREME POSITION AND
PRIVILEGE, RIGHT?
AND WHEN BRAVO CAME TO ME WITH
THE INCREDIBLE OPPORTUNITY TO BE
THE VERY FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO
REPRESENT THE DYNAMIC BEAUTIFUL,
BRILLIANT WOMEN THAT ARE BLACK
WOMEN IN NEW YORK CITY, WHAT A
GIFT, RIGHT?
WHAT AN HONOR.
AND I HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO
DO THAT JUSTICE AND DO IT IN A
WAY THAT IS NOT SINGULAR,
BECAUSE WE KNOW THERE IS NO
SINGULAR BLACK FEMALE
EXPERIENCE, BUT ONE THAT HONORS
THE COMPLEXITY AND THE DYNAMIC
NATURE OF WHO WE ARE AS A
CULTURE.
SO HARLEM NIGHT WAS ALL ABOUT
THAT.
AS FOR THE WOMENS PUSHBACK AND
RESISTANCE TO WHAT WAS BEING
PRESENTED, WHICH WAS A
BEAUTIFUL, I FEEL LIKE, NIGHT OF
CURATED BLACK EXCELLENCE, WHERE
I GIFTED EACH WOMAN A HARLEM
CANDLE, SHOUT OUT TO HARLEM
CANDLE COMPANY, THAT WAS
INDICATIVE OF THINGS I
REPRESENTED IN THEIR
PERSONALITIES.
SO THEY GOT JAMES BALDWIN, THEY
GOT BILLIE HOLIDAY, THEY GOT
LANGSTON HUGHES AND ALL OF THESE
GREAT LESSONS OF THE HARLEM
RENAISSANCE.
WHAT I KNOW FOR SURE IS
BLACKNESS IN AMERICA IS ONE OF
THE MOST MISUNDERSTOOD
UNDERAPPRECIATED ASPECTS OF
AMERICAN CULTURE.
AND AS SOMEBODY IN MY POSITION,
GOING BACK TO NIKOLE AND
EVERYTHING SHE REPRESENTS THAT
IS SO IMPORTANT IN THIS MOMENT,
I AM ALSO AN ALUM NIFT OF UNC
CHAPEL HILL, I GOT MY DEGREE
FROM UNC CHAPEL HILL AND I SEE
THE ATTACK ON AMERICAN
EXPERIENCES THAT IS GOING ON IN
OUR COUNTRY.
WE HAVE TO CALL A THING A THING,
AND YOU KNOW I HAVE NO PROBLEM
DOING THAT.
>> I KNOW THAT.
>> IT IS MY BENEVOLENT
RESPONSIBILITY TO USE THIS
INCREDIBLE PLATFORM THAT IS
GLOBAL, REAL HOUSEWIVES OF NEW
YORK, GLOBAL PLATFORM TO SHOW UP
IN BLACK EXCELLENCE, CALL A
THING A THING, AND MAKE SURE
THAT EVERYBODY, INCLUDING OTHER
BLACK AMERICANS, TIFFANY, HAVE
AS BEST AND MOST APPRECIATED
UNDERSTANDING OF BLACKNESS, AS
IVE BEEN BLESSED TO DO.
>> SO YOURE MAKING THE POINT
THAT YOU ARE NOT NECESSARILY
TRYING TO EDUCATE THE WOMEN ON
THE SHOW, BUT SOCIETY AT LARGE.
>> INDEED.
LISTEN, ITS NOT MY JOB --
YOULL SEE IN THIS WEEKS
EPISODE, WE AIR AT 9:00 P.M.
TUESDAY NIGHTS ON BRAVO, I HAVE
A LINE WHERE I SAY IM NOT TONI
MORRISON IN THIS PIECE, AND IM
SAYING IT JOKINGLY BUT FROM A
PLACE OF I HAVE MANY JOBS, IM
BLESSED TO DO MANY THINGS.
ONE OF THEM I DONT DO THAT I
GET PAID FOR IS EDUCATING WHITE
AMERICANS ON THE NATURE OF BLACK
AMERICA OR AMERICA IN GENERAL.
THATS NOT MY JOB.
BUT TO HAVE A PLATFORM LIKE
THIS, TIFFANY, AND FAIL TO USE
IT TO SPREAD THE GOOD NEWS OF
WHAT IT IS TO BE BLACK IN
AMERICA TODAY, I THINK WOULD BE
A GREAT TRAGEDY.
I THINK IT WOULD BE
IRRESPONSIBLE OF ME, AGAIN AS A
WOMAN IN THIS POSITION.
MY BLACKNESS IS MY FAVORITE
THING ABOUT ME.
AND IF THAT BORES SOME PEOPLE,
IF THAT INFURIATES SOME PEOPLE,
IF THAT IS NOT OF INTEREST TO
SOME PEOPLE, FRANKLY, ITS NOT
MY PROBLEM, NOR MY CONCERN.
>> RIGHT.
REALLY QUICKLY BECAUSE WERE OUT
OF TIME, BUT I JUST WANT TO ASK
QUICKLY, BECAUSE A LOT OF PEOPLE
FEEL LIKE THESE REALITY TV
PLATFORMS PERPETUATE NEGATIVE
STEREO TYPES ABOUT BLACK WOMEN
IN PARTICULAR, DO YOU EVER FEEL
CONFLICTED ABOUT BEING A PART OF
THE FRANCHISE, EVEN THOUGH YOU,
YOURSELF, ARE NOT NECESSARILY
PERPETUATING THAT STEREOTYPE?
>> SO I NEVER FEEL A CONFLICT,
TIFFANY, BECAUSE I ACTUALLY
THINK REALITY TV IS A
FASCINATING CULTURAL JUGGERNAUT
THAT HAS THE ABILITY TO IMPACT
SO MANY PEOPLE.
EVERYBODY IS NOT WATCHING THE
NEWS.
EVERYBODY IS NOT READING THE
NEWSPAPER OR LISTENING TO TALK
RADIO.
SO FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE, THEIR
UNDERSTANDING OF OUR VERY NATION
AND CULTURE COMES FROM THESE
SHOWS.
SO TO BE ABLE TO EXTEND MY WORK
AS AN ATTORNEY AND JOURNALIST
INTO THIS SPACE AND HAVE
PEOPLE -- WE TALKED ABOUT THIS
YESTERDAY, FROM GERMANY, FROM
AUSTRALIA, FROM SOUTH AFRICA,
PICKING UP THEIR FIRST COPY OF
JAMES BALDWINS FIRE, THATS A
GIFT AND IT TELLS ME ITS A JOB
WELL DONE.
>> I WANT TO SAY YOU LOOK
BEAUTIFUL ON THE SHOW AND I WAS
SO HAPPY TO SEE YOU THERE AND