Randomly asking my male friends, are you going to go see “For Colored Girls” by Tyler Perry, I constantly have received negative comments about why they are not going to support this movie.

I heard comments like, “I’m not going to go support this movie, because it is the same thing every time, All Tyler Perry does is make us black people look bad,” and “why would I go see a movie by a man that dresses like a woman.”

Hearing these comments has made me aware that black men especially are not in favor of seeing “For Colored Girls” for all the wrong reasons, when it should be for the support of black women all over the world.

Black women all over the world are excited about seeing “For Colored Girls.” And knowing that the black men we love are not in favor of seeing this movie is disappointing and it make me feel that guys do not want to realize why we care so much about seeing this movie.

Most guys said, the reason why they would not go see the movie is because all Tyler Perry does is make us look bad, and stereotype us as a people. They would go on to say that attending this movie would only be playing into the ignorance that he is portraying.

Unfortunately, I feel that it is sad and just being plain insensitive. So, what you are telling me is that you do not want to see “For Colored Girls,” a movie that was made to support BLACK women, because you think Tyler Perry is a homosexual, his movies are stereotypical and all of his movies are the same? Well what are valid explanations for this? Please explain to me the real reason. It would be nice for guys to want to see the movie simply because it is going to empower us to be stronger woman.

While talking to a male friend of mine, I asked him his thoughts on going to go see “For Colored Girls.” He said that “Tyler Perry has the same subject matter of every one of his movies, and I do not want to go see a movie about man bashing.”

When I asked him what made him say every movie is the same he replied, “It’s always a black woman, her husband aint treating her right in the beginning, she finds someone else and then her life is better at the end. That’s basically his storyline.”

I think it is safe to say that most every guy must feel this way, even if they do not want to admit it.

I strongly feel that “For Colored Girls” is a movie that inspired me emotionally, physically and mentally. Why would my black men not want to support this movie? What is the real reason you do not want to see this movie?

Do not get me wrong; every guy is not the same. But why is it that majority of our black brothers are against going to see this movie?

As a black woman, there is so much that we have to go through to loving ourselves and learning about life. Black men play a major role in this journey whether they realize it or not.

No matter how the story ends, the relationship that we had with that man, be it friendship or something more, has made us find and discover something about ourselves that we did not know. And I wonder if guys realize that or do they simply just not care?

Basically if a guy does not want to go see the movie, a female’s first reaction is not toward Tyler Perry. It is more to the point that we want to connect and share something special with a movie that is going to inspire us.

Yet when men reject to even attempt to go see it, this comes off to us as if that guys are so wrapped up in Tyler Perry’s sexuality and past movies that you cannot realize that this is actually a good movie for black women.

Guys complain about women, being weak-minded and acting immature. However, you fail to tell us how we can better ourselves or even how you can help us better ourselves. Seeing this movie with us is a way to better a relationship or friendship. But it is amazingly shot down, for one reason that was beyond our control.

A lot of black women can give a guy their soul and have it violently thrown back at them. While some black women give their soul to a man and it is connected to his. That is what this movie is about. Understanding and loving the journey that black women go through.

Hopefully after reading some people will talk about this and go see this movie and look at it through a positive perspective. I do understand that Tyler Perry’s movies are looked at as chick flicks in the eyes of a guy. But as men I believe you can learn more about women if anything, in a positive view.

As for the males who have something to say about the movie, look at the movie as a celebration for black women that care for you deeply. Honestly, some of you guys need to understand the power that black women possess and learn how to appreciate it.

When I say appreciate, I mean in the way you treat women and understand their way of thinking and why black women do what they do.

There is a reason behind everything. Majority of the time it is because she has a love for you that you just cannot seem to see for some reason.

Black women are strong and beautiful. That is what this movie was created to represent. I respect Tyler Perry for his talent. Because I believe Tupac said it best when he said, “We need to heal our women, be real to our women.”

 

• Janae Smith