Southern Racists Are Nicer Than NYC Racists
Comedian W. Kamau Bell thinks every American should spend time in the South. Not just to understand the country better, but to check their own biases. In this episode, he breaks down the difference between Southern and Northern racism, the myth of moral superiority in cities like New York, and why Waffle House might be more honest than your favorite sushi spot. Credits: Host: Kareem Rahma Guest: W. Kamau Bell Creators: Kareem Rahma & Andrew Kuo Camera: Anthony DiMieri & Maksim Axelrod Editor: Tyler Christie Associate Producer: Ramy Shafi Artwork: Andrew Lawandus
Summary
W. Kamau Bell thinks every American should spend two weeks a year in the South, and he's not talking about Atlanta or Nashville. He means Shreveport, Tallahassee, Mobile. Kareem pushes back hard, calling himself a "South Dodger" who can get gumbo in Queens just fine. But Bell argues that New Yorkers live in a bubble of moral superiority while most TV already shows them the North. The conversation takes a sharp turn when Bell claims "southern racists, when they're not killing you, are some of the nicest racists" compared to loud, mean New York racists. They'll serve you sweet tea and grits, say "bless your heart," then talk behind your back. Bell, who lives in Oakland but visits his dad in the South, rattles off specifics: Alabama's beaches, the "redneck Riviera," Waffle House over sushi bars. He even points out that most Black Americans live in the South, so hating on it means being anti-Black. Kareem's convinced. Sort of.
Full Transcript
So, what's your take? Every American should have to live for at least two weeks a year in the South. 100% disagree. I don't want to go. You're going. I'm a South Dodger. It's a—that's the problem. People like you live in New York City. People like you. You people—you people live in New York City thinking everything's here. Everything's enjoyable here. And then you condescend to the South that I haven't been there. And when I say the South, I don't mean Atlanta. I don't mean Miami. I don't mean New Orleans. I don't mean Nashville. I mean the South. Shreveport, Tallahassee, Mobile, Alabama.
Is this a punishment? This sounds like punishment. No, it's—well, you think it's punishment, but you'll learn that the South is a part of America, too. You'll understand why those people think the way they—they don't want to be a part of America. Some—most of them do. It's just a—it's just a loud few. But no, you'll understand that. That's one of the ways we build bridges. You need to live in the South. You need to enjoy the South.
I'm not talking about Texas. That's Texas. I think the Southern—needs to come to—they—southern—Southerners need to spend two weeks in New York. They come here, they try. Also, most TV is about the North. Most of the TV that you watch on TV, they got a good sense of Beverly Hills. They get a sense of New York because it's all everywhere. We don't spend enough time in the South.
What the hell am I going to do in Alabama? You're going to—you're going to do a lot of things. You're going to have gumbo. You can have jambalaya. You're going to go to the first—where Marty was.
I can do that in Queens. That's not the same. See, that's the problem. You people think that because you're in New York, everything's—yeah, you people—that everything's perfect. You need to spend—places where there's more Waffle Houses than sushi bars in the South. Waffle House is fire. And let's be clear, southern racists, when they're not killing you, are some of the nicest racists, right? They're some of the most—they will serve you sweet tea and pie and grits with no sugar and kaka sausage. And then when you leave, they'll say, "Bless your heart." And they'll talk shit about you. And they give you a little bit of lemonade. Give a little lemonade. And then you—but you know, you'll still a little bit of—in the lemonade if they really don't like you, but it'll still be tangy and delicious.
Where do you live? I live in Oakland, California.
Doesn't sound like the South to me. My dad lives in the South and I just got back from the South a few months ago. It was great.
What did you do? You ate double eye on gumbo.
Yeah. And I went to the beaches of Alabama. Did you know Alabama has beaches?
I didn't know that. Yeah. And they call it—and it's okay to say this—the redneck Riviera.
I mean, that sounds fire. And it's cheaper. That sounds fire. And the food is great. And you—and it's—and it's a M—and it's a cool hang. You'll hear some things, but you should learn some things. I'm chilling. I'm smoking cigs. Creek water. Some—some Neil Young even though he's a Canadian. There's some—some chicks, you know. You know, the Dixie Chicks.
The Dixie Chicks. I'm trying to give them the credit for their new name. Just the Chicks. Just the Chicks. I will say I—I drove through the South once.
See, I did. Okay. And everyone was quite nice. Yeah, they were quite nice.
Yeah. But it's ugly. So is New York. Have you been—have you been—have you looked around the—but at least New York is man-made. We made it ugly. The South is just God made it ugly.
God made it ugly. You know, you know what? The man upstairs. First of all, most of the Black people in this country actually live in the South.
Do they? So when you're anti-the South, you're anti-Black people. Is that how you want to be on the internet? Anti-Black people. You need to spend more time in the South. 'Cause even I would rather deal with a Southern racist than a New York racist.
Why? 'Cause they're nicer. They're nicer. They'll serve you food. Southern—New York racists are loud and mean. Southern racists are—hey, how you doing, baby? You one of those brown ones, ain't you? Oh, well, bless your heart.
That does sound nice. Yeah. Yeah, I could get behind that.
Yeah. So, two weeks every year you got to spend in the South. What kind of currency do they use down there? They tend to still use dollars. American dollars.
What about the language barrier? Everything slows down. The accents are thick. Hey, y'all. How y'all doing over there? Hey, y'all. Let me get a pop. And y'all is one of the greatest words ever created in the history of language. I like y'all. It covers—in New York, you guys—got what you got? Y'all—use guys. We got your—you're—that's not good. Y'all is one of the greatest words ever created.
All right, y'all. All right, y'all. Come to the South. Hey, y'all. I'll take gumbolayia. Gumbalayia.
Yes. Gumbo and jumbalaya mixed together. No.