logo

NBC’s Momma’s Boys: Xenophobes on Parade

By Loryn Wilson - Dec 17th, 2008 at 3:00 pm

So last night, I — and I’m sure some of you — tuned in to watch the season premiere of NBC’s Momma’s Boys. The premise of the show is that 32 women compete for the heart of 3 men. The twist is that these 32 women also have to get past the men’s mothers … who are very particular about the kind of girl their sons bring home.

When I met my man’s mother for the first time last year, I was naturally nervous. I knew they were close and I was worried that maybe she would be mean or wouldn’t like me. But when I met her, it wasn’t that way at all. She was really sweet and friendly, and never made me feel like I wasn’t good enough for her son.

But these moms on here? Hell no.

Some of the girls are stereotypical “good girls,” the ones that the moms will like the most: nurses, teachers, grad students, etc. And then, some of the girls are “bad girls” the ones they will not like as much: Playboy models (oh noes!)

The first two moms were fine -– they seemed to genuinely want their boys to meet someone nice, even if they were a little intrusive. (Why can’t the sons be trusted to pick out their OWN girlfriends without their momma all in it?) I will say that I found Esther, another bachelor’s mother to be the most stereotypical “Jewish Mom” I’ve ever seen. She uses Yiddishims like “verklempt.”

Everything was cool til I met Khalood, Jo-Jo’s mom. Oh Boy. In her video (above) to the girls, she announces that she does not like non-Catholic girls, Asian girls, Muslims, and she most definitely doesn’t want her son with “a black one.” Basically, she doesn’t want her son with anyone who isn’t like her. She wants a girl who is white and Catholic.

Really? But wait, it gets better.

Vita, a beautiful brown-skinned woman with two degrees who works as a nurse for the military, lets JoJo’s Momma, Khalood, know that they saw the video and that the ladies are PISSED. She tells her that her son can date whoever he wants, and as a member of the U.S. Army, she spends her time defending “the likes of [Khalood]!”*

Things got heated, words were exchanged, the Mom claims she has black friends (ugh) and before we know it, Khalood exclaims: “I’m not racist, I’m darker than you, bitch!”

Oh Sweet Jesus. Quicker than I could say, “oh hell no!” they cut to credits. I don’t know what to think of all this. I’m disgusted that they are making this woman’s xenophobia into entertainment. She was so matter-of-fact about her views in her video, and then when the women say they saw her video she proudly says, “Yeah, you saw that huh?”

It was just unreal. I almost hope this woman is just showing off for the camera and isn’t really like this, but I can’t help to think that she truly is this xenophobic — probably more xenophobic than racist. Khalood seems to have a great sense of fear and discomfort of “strange” people, that is to say people who are not like her. I would be remiss if I did not say that Vita deserves kudos giving Khalood a piece of her mind.

I’m not sure if I will be watching this one regularly, because the fact that racism, xenophobia and fucked up gender roles sexism is prevailing as a form of entertainment just makes me sick to my stomach.

* I realize that this point is problematic as it means that the Iraq war was about freedom. But I think this is more about the fact that Vita is in fact, a great catch who is both educated and a military woman but who will not be accepted by Khalood.

Tags: dating, racism, reality TV, sexism