Frankie Is Not Racist - Degrassi Next Class Season 2

NotAVampyre would like to point out that season 3 had not yet come out at the time of writing and recording for this video.
I think many of the criticisms to Frankie's situation in Degrassi Next Class season 2 are unfair, so why not make a video about it?
Check out my let's play channel I co-host with the other members of The Arch! / @thearchplays5533

[@virginiadavis9885]

bro i was always confused like why the whole team singled her out when they literally ALL DREW THE POSTER like they called her racist but they literally didnt do anything about it like tf

[@NotAVampyre]

It's because Kara specifically mentioned the monkey as being racist and Frankie was the one who drew the monkey. It was the monkey that Northern Tech seemed to have the most issue with.

[@virginiadavis9885]

@@NotAVampyre didnt they draw the whole team as monkeys? bc if so then all the other ones did the exact same thing

[@NotAVampyre]

No, the rest of the team were depicted as other zoo animals.

[@virginiadavis9885]

@@NotAVampyre ohhhhh well even so they didnt do anything to stop her and went along with the whole plan

[@NotAVampyre]

Because they didn't see it as racist either until Northern Tech pointed it out. Again, half the reason she got singled out was from her reaction to it all.

[@alfjgist]

This is a great video. As a black person, I love your perspective on the topic. No, Frankie isn’t a racist, because it’s not in her heart. At the same time, it doesn’t mean she can’t do or say things that are racist in nature. There is a distinct difference in the two. You did a good job explaining that. Going a bit further, I’ll defend Frankie in the flat tire incident by saying people in general are more comfortable with their own. Although the show points out that Frankie has a black friend, and a Latina friend, her comfort zone is with the high society crowd. It’s only when she looks at herself and realizes this, that she tries to make an effort to understand. The incident with Tiny bothered me, not because of the zero tolerance policy, but because of the fact that Tiny was attacked first, and he was protecting himself. That never was mentioned at all, and I guess it was for reasons of continuing the plot. Obviously, that might be nitpicking, but it is a point to make, especially on the grounds of accountability. Nobody in this story arc was ever really held accountable for their actions. Frankie was made a scapegoat. Tiny was turned into a poster child. The Degrassi volleyball team still played. The Northwest Tech team suffered no consequences. The boy that attacked Tiny was never seen nor heard from again, and the only one that learned a lesson was Shay.

[@NotAVampyre]

Lola did tell Simpson that Tiny was attacked first, but I think it was turned into a race thing since "no tolerance" seemed like an excuse to punish a black kid who was being violent. Still a long stretch, but zero tolerance policies don't make sense in the first place and people try to make reasonable what doesn't seem to follow logic. Still, if I were at Degrassi, I'd be suspect of the race angle and focus more on the fact he was a defender. I would argue that Frankie learned a lesson too, as did Lola in that some causes need fighting for, but yeah. A lot of handwaving to focus on the point of the plots, which doesn't satisfy attentive watchers.

[@tidachademana8944]

Omg yes she is

[@invadertifxiii]

ill defend frankie in the flat tire incident because it doesnt matter who had stopped to help, she got lucky he was actually nice but not all men are, a lot will actually take advantage and harm

[@NotAVampyre]

It's still worth Frankie examining her reaction though. Would she have done the same if he was white? If so, that shows her caution wasn't just a safety reflex but that she also assumed he'd be dangerous because of his skin color.

[@PlayfulFruitLPer]

It boils down to black people always being victims no matter what in todays society, even if they're the initial aggressor. Further, things black people do that are racist and intended to be racist get dismissed. They can call white people mayo monsters and bleach demons all day and nobody bats an eye, but when a white person says ANYTHING even without racist intention, it gets taken 10x more severely. Black people are priviledged and hypocrites. They want to end racism while openly practicing it, going so far as to try and redefine the term to negate taking accountability by saying racism can't be committed by black people. It's sad, pathetic, and quite low brow.

[@feyfey9745]

"accidental racism" is a good way to put it. But I think it could've been written, like Kara accepting the apology and the scapegoat thing being more... criticized. Also, although I liked this video a lot, I think what a lot of people (usually poc) mean when they say something you might interpret as "you can't talk about racism" is really just "you don't have as much personal experience as poc to understand racism from a certain perspective and while it's okay for white people to talk about racism, we should also empower poc voices.

[@NotAVampyre]

Kara did accept the apology when Frankie finally made it. Up until then she wasn't apologizing for her accidental part, but for other peoole being hurt by it (which is just a back handed was of saying I did nothing wrong.)

[@t.j.7789]

I agree with you. I also think with certain points of view or experiences, it’s valid to consider the source. It’s like having a man describe what cramps feel like or which sanitary product is best. What frame of reference does he have. Sure education and thought can help explain a situation but no man will know what having a period feels like.

[@past3ltrash]

@@t.j.7789 but at the same time its also very positive for a man to want to understand that we suffer with cramps and defend women to use your example. Its not the same but at the same in reality sometimes men only listen to men because thats what they relate to. So having allies is REALLY important. You get allies by letting them talk. As long as its positive and defending poc isnt it a good thing that a white person defends poc when another white person is racist for example. By uniting people we can tackle problems more and more. This goes for a lot of things tho. As an LGBT members I am very proud of my straight friends being supportive allies and preaching anti homophobia and proud of my guy friends preaching that female rights are important.

[@takearriabrown7644]

The thing is Frankie refused to recognize her wrongdoings and always tries to play victim and innocent....I see why she thinks it’s not racist yet she should’ve just listened.

[@NotAVampyre]

2:41 It's not what she did, it's what she said afterward. In getting defensive, she doubled down on it instead of admitting fault and that it was an accident. Besides, how many hundreds of people in a row do you have to (mistakenly) give the benefit of the doubt before you're justified assuming it's intentionally offensive?

[@malindauboh7762]

honest bitch The second part of your user name is the only honest thing I read. You actually need help. You’re pathetic and disgusting. You need to grow out out being a racist idiot.

[@NotAVampyre]

Hey. We're having a discussion here. No need to resort to name calling.

[@malindauboh7762]

NotAVampyre If she’s gonna call all black people “ weak and pathetic babies” she should be prepared to get name called🤷🏾‍♀️

[@NotAVampyre]

You're sinking to their level and not making yourself look good by coming out swinging with names instead of showing how they're wrong. One should use reason before throwing figurative punches.

[@user-tz1fx2fe9g]

I legitimately hated how they did this plot line. If the other school had done a different prank that wasn't basically sexual assault it would've been ok. If they had done something like stealing their mascot or something it would've been fine. To take their clothes and force them outside is wrong. Also the story line is wildly out of touch. Who showers at school? This was most definitely written by a middle aged man trying to navigate woke/cancel culture. No one explained to Frankie why she was in the wrong and yeah you can retort with "it isn't their job to explain to people why they're racist" but if you can't break it down for someone don't bother. It doesn't help anything and honestly probably makes that person more racist. It was exhausting to watch nextclass with how they wrote things. It was cancel culture.

[@MakeupWithSmidge]

Holy balls you hit the nail on the head

[@maggiedk]

I'm sorry... As an SA survivor, I really don't like you framing what was clearly (in the context of the show) supposed to be a high school prank as sexual assault. Was it a prank that they took too far, and something totally not okay to do? Yes. But is the way that the show framed the incident - as something that multiple of them went through together, that was embarrassing but not traumatic, and was pretty easily forgotten - sexual assault? No. Also, people literally did used to shower sometimes at my high school, lol. Especially if they did sports earlier in the day but had to go to class after. It definitely wasn't something most of us chose, and I never personally did, but it did happen.

[@user-kt3qm8jy8y]

​​@@maggiedkhe writers executed it wrong because in most real life situations, taking someone's clothes and forcing them to present naked in front of the school is a form of sexual misconduct. Especially with them being minors. I'm sorry for what you experienced but that doesn't have to take away from this situation as well. That was the problem, it shouldn't have been shown as something shallow and silly. It was serious. It would be traumatizing to many in real life.

[@maggiedk]

@@user-kt3qm8jy8y "a form of sexual misconduct" (which agree, it was) is NOT the same as "basically sexual assault." Sexual misconduct is a much broader term. Sexual assault refers to sexually touching someone without their consent, or forcing/coercing them to perform sexual acts - absolutely not what happened here. Things can be traumatic without being sexual assault. What was done to them was much more akin to an act of bullying or hazing, which can absolutely be traumatic and could have been treated with more weight! But it's insulting to survivors to equate what was done to them to sexual assault, because that's not what it was.

[@user-kt3qm8jy8y]

@@maggiedk that statement I can fairly get behind and agree with the definition. I just mainly didn't like your wording and how you sounded like you were down playing the situation at hand. That was definitely the fault of the writers for not handling that better because i know if that happened to me I would not welcome it lightly nor should anyone else. But the sexual assault point was fair.

[@shannonserier1497]

I feel like the biggest problem with this plot is it was not all just frankie's fault it was partly the northern tech team for pranking them and the rest of the degrassi team for making the banner sure frankie didn't handle the apology well but I hate how the whole team turned on her even though they all helped make the banner. Also I don't really like Kara very much because I think she should have apologized for the prank they played on degrassi. I just think don't like when one person gets blamed when in reality its a whole mix of people.

[@raynebirkin6726]

Fucking facts!!!

[@raynebirkin6726]

It blew my mind how fast they just turned on her like that. It legitimately pissed me off.

[@Melancholy4ngel]

Exactly! No wonder I was disappointed in that plot. Plus none of that bullshit would’ve happened if Northern Tech hadn’t prank them

[@tylynnbehn9249]

Yah because they shouldn’t be held accountable for racism

[@kelsey1467]

@@tylynnbehn9249 it would of been nice if kara had owned up to her mistake too

[@melamaman3238]

Black and Latin American woman talking (And sorry my bad english) , well I'll just say my point of view, I don't think Frankie was to blame for anything, there are several things that they did not take into account and made Frankie look like a Rasista in a forced way: 1: If the volleyball team seemed racist, why didn't they tell you anything? Easy, they didn't seem racist until Black got offended. Nobody said anything about it. 2: Frankie asked them to explain why what she did was racist, they didn't tell her anything and don't come with the thing about "She's no one to explain to her," if you don't tell her why she's wrong, don't tell her she's wrong. 3: They never mentioned the opposing team's joke, therefore they had no consequences. 4: Frankie was always sincere, despite being defensive she always put her ideals first and although everyone told them that she was wrong without explaining why she explained to others why she did not believe that what she did was wrong while others they did not want to hear it.

[@strawbZzZs]

I don’t know why none of the team got blamed. If you took part of it, you should be in trouble too.

[@NotAVampyre]

4:28

[@NotAVampyre]

@Trinity Gilreath That very much goes along with the theme of seemingly harmless comments and actions can be really hurtful, and that you can do racist things no matter what you look like. They even showed this again when Lola legit asked Goldie if she has an arranged marriage. Like with Frankie, we can be certain she didn't mean harm in saying these, but also like with Frankie this doesn't prevent people from getting hurt by her ignorance.

[@NotAVampyre]

@Trinity Gilreath Not really worse. Same level if anything as we haven't seen them be actively racist or even accidentally after this season. Frankie's just got more attention because she was being very defensive of her actions and weirdly hands off from the situation. What do you mean about the racism suspension? I found it to be handled as well as it could be as it was never made clear if the school board was being unknowingly racist with their zero tolerance policy or if it's simply a blanket unfair system. It was shown to be something worth questioning.

[@modub6091]

The true issue is, it was never explained to Frankie why the originally harmless prank was racist, not that she is racist herself.

[@NotAVampyre]

She also never really tried to investigate either. She just kept insisting it can't be racist because she can't be racist. There was a lack of communication all over

[@twistedbliss58]

@@NotAVampyre if you’re going to call someone racist you need to be able to explain how and why

[@NotAVampyre]

The person you're trying to explain it to still needs to be willing to hear it, otherwise you're wasting your breathe. We never got to see people try to explain it because Frankie wasn't interested in why before she had her own revelation. Before that, she always responded with a version of "no, that's silly ".

[@twistedbliss58]

@@NotAVampyre that’s such a cop out answer, no one actually tried to explain to her why what she did was allegedly racist

[@YellowDragon813]

​@twistedbliss58 Which explains the REAL reason Shay wanted her off the team.

[@astrofemm3]

As a black woman who has experienced microagressions and racism that isnt overt, Frankie was most definitely racist. The girls on the opposing team stealing their clothes should not be used as consideration for the depiction of the girls in the drawing. The fact that they were called "the zoo" to begin with is already rooted in racism and Degrassi has a record of making their Black characters based on stereotypes (Tiny, Shay, Dave, etc..) or restricting them to background status(Haze, Chantel, Shay, etc..). The fact that they drew them as gorillas out of all of the zoo animals and use caricature features like the big lips, a thing that has been done to mock Black features. I hate how Degrassi made it seem like the Black captain was in the wrong for being upset that she was being subjected to the micro aggressions. No matter if it was "accidental" the point is that she was being racist which makes her a racist and comments saying that Northern Tech was at some fault for this incident, which is essentially saying that they had it coming. Racism is never an okay way to respond and it is no ones fault but the one being racist. I also do not like how her potentially not accepting Frankies apology is "immaturity" because black people are not obligated to make white people feel comfortable by accepting their apologies for their racist behavior, and they are not immature for doing so. Also it is important to note that Frankie continues to negate the captains feelings and only realizes the impact of her actions when her white boyfriend Jonah confronts her with it. This is a common occurence when sometimes white people only understand racism when other white people explain it to them and not the Black people that that are subjected to it. This is my issue with white people directing and writing scenes about racism because it will never truly portray the complexities of racism. some of this is a very white take which is understandable because it ignores nuances and how it specifically effects black people, and it is harder to understand or apply these when you are not black. I wish Degrassi would have used this incident to focus more on the team captains perspective and on Frankies white fragility/guilt.

[@_chloe_vlogs]

As for Frankie's car scene, I didn't know that was supposed to be an example of unconscious racism until I read a post about it a while back. Idk how things are in Canada, but I live in the US. The South to be more specific. If I have a flat and ANY strange man shows up and tries to "help," regardless of race I'm going to be locking my doors, finding my pocketknife, and calling my dad for help. But maybe things are different in Canada ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@NotAVampyre]

Basically the point was to investigate if she got defensive because he was a strange man or because he was specifically a strange black man. Like, would Frankie have been less guarded if he was white?

[@invadertifxiii]

omg yes exactly especially in major cities

[@iiamkee21]

very well spoken I can see all points of view especially with how torn shay was because sometimes ppl who weren't raised like you were generally won't get why your mad or upset at a certain thing, it opens discussion on why we feel how we feel

[@assyrianprincess3]

Thank you!!! People took Frankies prank wayyyy to far.

[@NotAVampyre]

But it's understandable why they did. Now if only Frankie realized that sooner...

[@w1nnfield]

No they didn’t it was a little racist they shouldn’t have messed up the whole teams season but it was still fairly offensive if she meant to do it or not

[@ariasylvestre2075]

They did not.

[@leabiste6393]

I get where these characters are coming from, but everyone fails to aknowledge how the other team's prank is problematic too. Their prank forced these girls to practically be naked in public. That's gross and could be triggering. I get how the other prank is accidentally racist and why they got so upset, and they were right to. But if I were on Degrassi's team, I'd be upset too. The thought of being forced to be naked in public is very upsetting to me. I imagine I'd find that pretty traumatizing. If I were on the Degrassi team, instead of "pranking back" or whatever, I'd refuse to play them as their prank went too far too.

[@NotAVampyre]

No one is failing to acknowledge it though. It's actually used as justification for and a reason to excuse Frankie's actions a lot of the time. Hell, even I recognize that it's a big bad thing to do that was ignored, but I don't think what Northern Tech did means that we shouldn't talk about Frankie or how she responded to accidentally being problematic.

[@leabiste6393]

@@NotAVampyre Totally, Frankie's actions should be acknowledged in the way that they were, her response was totally problematic, and I don't think she meant to be, but she fails to see what she did wrong and fails to listen to others for a while. I'm not denying that she was being problematic. But I don't remember the other team ever getting called out for their prank either, which was also bad. I definitely think that Degrassi team's response was way out of line, they should have just refused to play or something instead.

[@kelsey1467]

Personally I think they just should have not done the banner period don't stoop to their level just ignore it

[@leabiste6393]

@@kelsey1467 I wouldn't have ignored it. I don't think I would have been comfortable playing with them after that.

[@kelsey1467]

@@leabiste6393 I do wish the made kara a little more sympathetic cause even by the end I don't like her too much

[@tinglesaj8883]

2:08 Can we acknowledge she wore huge hoops to a volleyball game

[@NotAVampyre]

I can see it as she wore them under the assumption they wouldn't actually play because when they meet in the finals, she's earringless. Good catch tho

[@hesayshesayhowboutmesay]

Clearly from the responses, being “a little racist” is somehow okay.

[@noviadejake]

Really well explained

[@NotAVampyre]

Thank you!

[@donnyohakam]

She’s not a racist but sometimes people can do things that are racist and won’t see it due to ignorance and privilege which was Frankie’s case. Ultimately, however, she wasn’t intentionally trying to be racist. As long as they apologize and own up to it, everyone should move on.

[@haventimoney8726]

This was a great video I enjoyed it a lot. When watching the series this storyline annoyed me. Frankie isnt racist she just did something that was racist. And nobody explained why it was racist just that it was. Admittedly she could have tried to figure out why it was racist instead of becoming defensive. But when people come at you the usual response is to fight back without thinking. It might of been her idea but the volleyball team(excluding shea) went along with it. They were perfectly fine with it until other people got offended by it. They were just as racist yet there was no consequence. They weren't great friends and never apologized for their own actions. Speaking of apologies, the other volleyball never apologized for stealing their clothes, pulling the fire alarm, and forcing them to walk outside naked with only towels around them. There should have been big consequences for that but no. And frankie is the one kicked off the volleyball team, it didn't make sense.i love degrassi but this storyline should have and could have been better written. It's easy to call someone a racist and write them off, but its a lot harder to help someone change or see that their actions were wrong. Sorry for this rant just wanted to put my thoughts down.

[@molly_parker_1847]

I actually would have done the same thing that Frankie did with locking the door when a stranger came up to her car. Not because he is black but because he is a man. The first time I saw that scene I said the same thing. I’m sorry but every time I see a man in a store or on the street I will try not to be that close to him and I will keep an eye on him because I don’t want to get raped or molested and that’s just how are world is and I know most girls do the same thing. They probably carry pepper spray. I just pray everyday I’m not one of those girls that it happens to. Statistics show that most girls get sexually violated by the time they are in their 40s and by watching Degrassi I’ve just became even more worried because I feel like every girl gets sexually violated on that show. I know if you are a guy and you read this comment you will call me sexiest and that’s fine but you can’t honestly tell me that their aren’t sick people out there female or male.

[@molly_parker_1847]

KoreanPolish*G-Man Yeah exactly! It’s so sad that people can’t walk on the street without there closest friends with them. Sorry you have to go through that🙁 Hopefully things will get better

[@mickeymouse5650]

If you watched the full episode frankie realised herself being racist like when that black man was gonna help her but she locked the doors- she realised what she was doing and how she was acting! I think this was honestly one of the best storylines in degrassi because it made everyone including the audience question themselves and realise that racism doesn’t always have to be blatant prejudice- it could be things like this m

[@NotAVampyre]

I did watch the entire season, including that episode. In this video, I explain exactly what you say and deffend this storyline.

[@schooldude1000]

Very well thought out video! I disagreed with you on a few things, but overall I thought the message you gave about always asking the tough questions and being able to take responsibilities for your actions even when you didn't mean any harm was really insightful!

[@NotAVampyre]

Thanks! I think that message is getting muddied by some of the plot contrivances of the season and people getting hung up on the fact that Frankie didn't intend to hurt anyone.

[@mbmoons]

Got around to rewatching next class again and decided to see if anyone had made a video on this topic! so glad i found one! you give a well spoken read on the issue. people seem to have a hard time understanding that it's possible for Frankie to do something racist...without her being /a racist/. people are so stuck on that label that they fail to understand the implications of her actions, whether she meant it or not...if someone drew me or my family members as a monkey, i would 100% find it racist and hurtful, no matter what their intentions were. this video echoes some of my own sentiments, although i feel in general this plot was poorly executed and left me with too many "whys" and "hows?" it was necessary, but maybe the length of the season or the quality of writing just...made it hard to truly appreciate. for that reason i feel a lot of other people miss the point too. this plot deserved better treatment :( it could've been a really good chance to show people how they can start to inspect and break down their own biases.

[@misssinisterseventy1553]

While I do understand why it hurt them, they were getting wayyyy too offended. When Frankie said “those people” it seemed like common sense that she was talking about the other team, and when shay got all offended about that, I rolled my eyes so far I saw my brain

[@NotAVampyre]

I don't think you've ever been around racist people. "Those people" is an othering tactic. A way of separating yourself from a group who you hold negative opinions towards, whether they be reasoned or no. Of course everyone knew she was talking about the other team, but by using "those people" it sounded like she was separating herself from them based on race. By saying this, Frankie made herself sound like the racist people are starting to suspect her of being.

[@misssinisterseventy1553]

NotAVampyre yeah I do get that, but I still think people were being very oversensitive to what she said. It’s like every time she tried to make it better everyone got even more dad at her

[@NotAVampyre]

She wasn't trying to make it better. She was progressively getting louder at telling everyone that they're just wrong about her and their concerns are invalid without considering why they're concerned in the first place. You can't honestly say that Northern Tech overreacted to the meeting at The Dot. Frankie's behavior was atrocious. You need to remember that Frankie's behavior was making her friends suspect maybe Northen Tech was right about her as she made the "those people" comment. Without the context, they wouldn't have reacted so strongly.

[@laurendaley2503]

I wish the story was done better, this gives me great anxiety and i try to avoid watching them again. Frankie was and still is one of my least favorite characters and this just makes me not feel sympathy for her 😔

[@NotAVampyre]

This actually makes me like Frankie. People usually just double down on their mistakes instead of learning as Frankie tried to do, but the difference is that Frankie actually got better. She actually saw the error of her ways and apologized. More than most "good" people will ever do.

[@stevenrobinsonmovies]

Explained very well. It made me appreciate the storyline more. The fact the show focused on accidental and unconscious racism is amazing. A lot of viewers didn’t see it that way.

[@NotAVampyre]

Yeah, this is one of Degrassi's most misunderstood plotlines

[@invadertifxiii]

id love it if u did a video on hunters depression and the reality of how not all people especially teens who suffer from depression are sad or cry. after seeing his arc and how some manifest depression into anger really hit me, i took a long hard look at my past and how i was depression long before i lost my mom at 15, that trauma just amplified it

[@pikachick222]

I don't think Frankie locking the door had much to do with race bias but more to do with safety measure. For one thing she lives in freaking Toronto which is a huge city. I grew up in a small town where people don't lock their car doors and front doors on their houses. When I moved to a big city when I started university my mum made it vehemently clear that I lock the front door every time I leave the house and I lock my car doors and don't leave my purse or anything valuable or expensive in the front seat of my car. Another thing I'm assuming that Frankie was born in 1999 from what I've heard kids born around that time have been raised in this fear culture where it seems like everyone around you is a mugger or a kidnapper. Let's not forget that her dad is the mayor of Toronto so her family is in the public eye

[@NotAVampyre]

The thing is Frankie isn't so sure that she didn't lock the door based on the guy being black. It isn't confirmed, but Frankie herself feels it's something she can't immediately rule out. She is not so sure she would've reacted the same if the Good Samaritan was white. That's the part that matters.

[@pikachick222]

good point

[@davidtolbert8446]

This comment section is INFURIATING! It's so frustrating how so many people empathized more with Frankie's racism than the Black characters. "They started it first" in no way excuses racism, period. Racism has done infinitely more harm them a couple of girls being forced to wear towels, no it is NOT comparable. Calling a black woman a gorilla is racist, period. In the same way that you don't have to despise women to hold sexist beliefs, Frankie doesn't have to despise black people to hold racist attitudes. Frankie is blatantly condescending and totally unempathetic to the black women, going as far as to try to explain race to them, send her black friend to apologize for her, and refuse to take accountability for her actions despite having MULTIPLE opportunities. She was more concerned with not being racist than she ever was with the actual racist harm and humilitation she caused. The other volleyball team didn't consider her apology because "i'm sorry you were offended, I meant nothing wrong" is NOT an apology. It's the same as punching someone in the face and then saying "I'm sorry if your face hurts, i didn't realize it would cause you such pain" I do agree though that it's unfair that the entire team was complicit and only Frankie got the blame like yeah it was Frankie's idea so she deserved the biggest punishment but the others also should've taken accountability. All of the desperation to deny the racism of Frankie's poster is ridiculous, like out of all the animals in the Zoo she just so happened to choose a gorilla for the black captain ok sis.

[@leona6361]

FINALLY IN THIS POOL OF COMMENTS OF VICTIM BLAMING I FOUND ONE SANE COMMENT

[@basrakeynan5988]

As a black women who grew in a white majority town, I’ve dealt with these type of situation and I have seen both sides. The time where the person takes accountability and recognizes the privilege they have. Then there’s what Frankie did. I would be more hurt that she isn’t willing to hear that she hurt other people. If you knocked over a pot and hit someone’s foot, you make sure they are okay. I know there’s people who don’t understand or have the history to understand racism, but understand that just because it’s not in front of you. There’s a world behind you.

[@coralinetraveller4715]

the perception that others have of things cannot be worth more than the objective reality of things. Frankie was not a racist and no one morally can be punished for an action that did not have an immoral purpose. The reason Frankie made that banner is clear: the rival team's school was called the zoo shay also took part in the banner... obviously the general intent was not racist but why is her participation seen as naïve and that of a white girl is racism? Is it so absurd to think that two girls of different colors have the same intentions? In all honesty to me seems that Frankie is the scapegoat of the real racists. They made black people suffer and now all whites are expected to treat black people with extreme sensitivity and not with the spontaneity with which they treat anyone else ... . "It doesn't matter if you don't hate my race, do or Say something a racist might do or say and you will pay" Shay knew Frankie ... she has never treated her differently from anyone else at school ... Yet after the accusations even Shay begins to consider Frankie racist and even wonders if she will be able to forgive her even after her apologies. literally says: Should a racist be forgiven if he is sorry for what he is done? racists called black people monkeys to denigrate them ....It wasn't you friend... For her a monkey Is Just a funny animal Your best friend drew a monkey ... Even you drew a monkey to tease the other squad as equals and without thinking about racist symbolism. just because things are part of the racist history it doesn't mean they only have that meaning when a white uses them and a black person Is involved would it be better to avoid that ? Yeah, but sometimes people don't realize... Miss some connections Do they deserve to be cancelled for that? Yes? Here it is! Thus we move from fighting racism to creating a state of social subjection and inequality of expression. if someone does or says a controversial action or word .... we talk and contextualize and understand thejr intentions Psychological terrorism shouldn't be used to solve the problem. The goal does not justify the means Sorry for my english

[@ela_le_x5051]

4:06 "Those people?" Yes, the student from Northern Tech are THOSE people, because they are not part of THIS school :)

[@NotAVampyre]

You're missing the inherent otherness of calling a group "those people". It suggests there's more difference between Frankie and the Northern Tech girls than school affiliation especially because historically such language was used by racists and bigots who believe there fundamental differences between people that justifies prejudice. That there's some in born separation between your in group and the people you're talking about that makes it okay to treat them differently and in a worse way. Again, it's not what Frankie meant, but it's still not a good look especially when you keep claiming you're not racist.

[@MrTambourineMan.]

Exactly. There are white people who go to that school. Clearly she didn’t mean it as a separation of race, but another team. I don’t know how we can have language if we can’t use the words in theme as they were intended to be used.

[@NotAVampyre]

You missed the point.

[@MrTambourineMan.]

NotAVampyre I might have. You mean that the girl from Northern Tech was sensitive to being called “those people” because she has previous experience being called that in a racist way? I understand that but the way they wrote the Kara character it’s like she wanted Frankie to be racist. Anytime Frankie would try to apologize or demonstrate that she doesn’t have a racist approach, The Northern Tech captain would fire back with something that wasn’t relevant to the discussion they were having. Frankie was collateral damage from what some real racists did to her in the past. Your video was really well put together. It’s nice to relive Degrassi memories!

[@NotAVampyre]

See other reply. Frankie never once actually apologized until the end of the season and that's why people saw her as racist. Kara believed Frankie only when she recognized she made a decision that hurt people instead of trying to explain why Kara should just stop feeling hurt.

[@pet5007]

I’m black and I didn’t think that Frankie wasn’t trying to be mean

[@NotAVampyre]

The question wasn't if she was trying to be mean. It was if she was purposely racist

[@sailorsister211]

I agree Northern Tech should have been punished for their prank, esp since false alarm are serious issues when it comes to school with all that going on with schools, plus their prank wasn't so innocent either and I didn't hear an apology from them. Now that I think about it their prank could have hurt the volley team other than embarrassed. What if someone from the team as a mental illness and suffers from someone type of team was recovering eating disorder, sexual abuse victim, self-harm and as body issues where being naked even if they are just cover with a towel will be too triggering. As someone who suffers from body image, bullying, self-harm, and depression, their prank would have triggered a panic attack. I have heard stories of victims from Larry Nassar how serious his action affect them, many of them aren't still comfortable being around people they don't know, I'm sure other victims who weren't abused by Nassar feel the same, can you imagine being an abuse victim being naked in front of people you don't know. As for Frankie, yeah it was unfair that she got the full blame for it when everyone was more than okay to draw the drawing. I could understand if she was kicked out of the team if everyone who did the bander apologizes and she didn't. I don't remember any of the girls apologize to the team other than Shay which she had nothing to apologize to the team for. None of the other team got some sort of punishment. My former friend was co-captain of the soccer team in her senior, she said when misfit does happen, as captain she gets a worse punishment than the other girls bc it's her job to set a good example but the other girls don't get punishment free pass either. The thing that did piss me off about Frankie not accepting that she fucked up and excusing her actions until the very end of the season even when her prank hurt many people, even if the prank wasn't meant to be racist but it was. As a victim of bullying, many of the bullies who bullied me didn't saw it as bullying they just saw it as fun, that didn't make it okay. Also, the whole Frankie wanting Shay to clean up her mess, even when Shay was against pranking them in the first place. If I were Shay, I will be like hell no, if you made this mess, you should be the one cleaning it up. Honestly, I do believe it should have been the whole team and Franke should have apologized to Northern Tech.

[@Symphonia30]

I’ve seen this show type of racism so many times but this is the worst take on racism I’ve ever seen and it definitely needed some rewrites

[@idontkniw7992]

She should’ve handled the situation different and how aren’t they expelled for stealing their clothes and they could’ve dropped their towels and it would’ve been a disaster

[@MrTambourineMan.]

I didn’t like this storyline at all because no one took the time to listen to Frankie or consider that maybe what she did was something other than racism. When Shay went over to the girls house from the other team, that girl actually acknowledged that Frankie didn’t mean that painting as racist, but her respond immediately was but other people said different things about me because of the color of my skin so Frankie should pay for their mistakes, even if she didn’t say any of those things.

[@lukesomniverse7968]

There is no such thing as "accidental racism" even if you do something that others have done to be racist, then you actually doing the act yourself isn't racist cuz racism is based off of hating someone do to there..well race. In order for what she did to be racist she had to actually be doing it cuz she was black, and if that's the case it isn't racism. That means while what Frankie did was unethical it also wasn't racist nor "accidentally racist" which isn't a thing." It's a really stupid term because saying someone is racist just cuz they did something which could be interpreted as racist is dumb.

[@sclstl]

what? if you do something racist then you're racist. this comment makes no sense. thats like saying im not a politician even though i have a position in politics. you make 0 sense.

[@lukesomniverse7968]

@@sclstl This is sort of an updated comment and a lot of my views have changed since so I agree this doesn't actually make sense to me either.

[@sclstl]

@@lukesomniverse7968 lmao

[@Celrrose]

Accidental racism isn't a thing. The Google definition of racism is prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one's own race is superior. This implies purpose meaning racism must be purposeful.

[@NotAVampyre]

Not being in the dictionary doesn't mean that it's not a thing. Has transgender always been in the dictionary?

[@Celrrose]

@@NotAVampyre the dictionary isn't the point. Racism implies intent to harm on the perpetrators end.

[@NotAVampyre]

And adding accidental as a qualifyer denotes that while Frankie didn't intend harm, she did create harm none the less.

[@Celrrose]

@@NotAVampyre yes but she isn't racist. She is not responsible for the feelings of others. Frankie isn't racist at all even though someone got hurt.

[@NotAVampyre]

Watch my video. I said she's not a racist. No, she isn't responsible for the feelings of others, but she is responsible for her actions and the effects they have on others. She hurt someone, and she had to learn to recognize that. We cannot live in bubbles where we pretend that what we say and do has not effect on anyone else. That's how you get real racists and bigots who legit don't care about anyone else but themselves and their own. While she can't just tell others how to feel, she can strive to not cause senseless and unreasonable harm. Like, by not portraying a people historically called monkeys to justify the evil done to them as monkeys.

[@rascallyga]

I like this. Very well spoken.

[@HenshinHeroesMedia]

I think frankie was trying to make amends at the beginning at s2, but with the drama of her bro and her privilege, some folks assume the worst. It even shows she had a bias but glad she chose in the end to at least change

[@invadertifxiii]

thank u for doing this, so many other youtubers are so quick to brand frankie as racist when she was ignorant to the history and knowledge. there were plenty of better ways to educate her. she did not try to ask how is it racist yea, did she try to throw money at the situation yes.

[@savannahmarie570]

This plot was stupid af lol she’s not racist their school is called the zoo. No everyone was a monkey were they? Gtfo it. Lol haaated that whole part of degrassi. It was so annoying lmao I would’ve slapped the captian from NT 😂😂😂.. and they stole their clothes making them run around in towels and franky was shown NAKED. Like come on dude …

[@NotAVampyre]

It seems like you're only viewing this from Frankie's perspective.

[@pembrokelove]

I also wonder why there wasn’t more voice given to the fact that the other team had engaged in what could be called a sex crime, real-life CP, in many contexts. If it had been male characters who took the girls’ clothing and pulled the alarm - it would be handled very differently.

[@AnimeLuffyFan]

Great video I image that if the episode was today she will be cancelled 💀

[@sky-oi7hk]

im late but, she has internalized racism.

[@RokushoHasashi]

Wow, this is very well explained 👍🏽

[@NotAVampyre]

Thank you!

[@HenshinHeroesMedia]

Glad you pointed out zero tolerance. Yes, tiny didn't start the fight yet he is the one who got struck first and punished. Sure the school would have suspended him if he just blocked and as someone who use to study martial arts, fighting is a last resort and it was for tiny. Also, anyone can have racial bias, but we can either choose to learn or we become the worst.

[@bcrunch4232]

Have you seen the early Degrassi seasons too?

[@NotAVampyre]

+BCRunch I have, yes. I've seen all of Degrassi except the "Never Look Back" film special. Still working up the courage for that...

[@bcrunch4232]

Awesome. Also what do you think of Miles ii?

[@NotAVampyre]

+BCRunch I like him. He's not my favourite, but I can definitely appreciate his arch. It's wonderful to see such a troubled guy grow into not just a person with a future in writing, but also get to the point where he could start helping others like Hunter and Tristan. I sort of wish I'd favour him more.

[@bcrunch4232]

Cool. Also I don't know if you watched Life with Derek but... I can't believe Miles' father is played by the same guy who played George Venturi. They're both such different characters as fathers and people.

[@NotAVampyre]

+BCRunch I've not seen the show, but it's cool to hear the actor is so flexible in character portrayal. It's probably weird to see him as not a terrible father on another show

[@truthseeker9249]

If I ever experienced a "prank" like what the Northern Tech people did, they would need to sleep with one eye open because ny vengeance would be painful and agonizing for them. They forced the Degrassi girls to be naked in public. Think about Goldi! Her religion! Given how modest they have to be. I'm sure a situation like that is even worse/more horrifying for people in her postion. What they did was a s*xual offense and way more of a personal violation than someone making a racist drawing of a person. If a group of guyd did that to them, they'd be facing charges. Watching this episode, I can't even focus on whats going on with Frankie because the fact that they faced no consequences or even got called out for what they did makes me so mad. This is speaking as someone who's experienced being taken advantage of s*xually, who's experienced s*xual harassment and is struggling with s*xual harassment at this very moment in my workplace.

[@violetmusic707]

Thank you! finally somebody isn't scolding Franky, although nobody actually taught her why they thought her actions were wrong.

[@NotAVampyre]

Because she wouldn't listen until the end of the season. Before that point, she believed that everyone else just had to let it go and that it wasn't a big deal

[@quinnpraiser]

it isnt my place to say its okay, but i agree.

[@Jackieghosts]

Well, i am scared of any guy coming to my car no matter what race they are

[@jaytoca3820]

I believe that the prank was wrong and Frankie should have taken responsibility for her part but not all of it the whole team drew the picture and they all know what they were doing and than they all turned on Frankie when they found it was actually racist.

[@Symphonia30]

Degrassi next class season 2 was just infuriating. I can’t believe the northern Tech team have the nerve to act like the victim after a prank of stealing their clothes and pulling the fire alarm which is a crime by the way and they get no consequences. What’s even stupider is that they were the ones who instigated the prank then when they strike back they want to act like the victims and pull that stupid race card, like really. And the whole season is pretty much all about making Frankie look like a racist. This is exactly what I hate about shows that tackle racism they want to make someone look like the bad guy of the opposite color when what Frankie did wasn’t intentionally racist. Yeah this was stupid writing at its finest. How would I have written this? How about addressing both issues rather than being so fixated on Frankie?

[@toddsamford8719]

Sorry, but you’re wrong. Frankie isn’t overtly racist but her actions and comments were still discriminatory

[@NotAVampyre]

That's why I call her an accidental racist. She doesn't really believe in racial inequality, but she does hold discriminatory ways of thinking that she slowly starts to realize at the end of the season.

[@toddsamford8719]

NotAVampyre I can agree with that, good explanation

[@tatyannna9942]

👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

[@kalianafloyd5700]

It would have been racist if she drew all of them as gorillas so no but the way she didn’t listen is messed up

[@azzz7279]

Frankie would definitely say “all lives matter” and she probably would’ve voted for Trump if she was American or not voted at all because it doesn’t affect her lmao

[@NotAVampyre]

I can see it, though I'm thinking it'd come from a place of ignorance and not understanding why those things are bad. On top of that, also not going out of her way to find out why those are bad and just continuing to say "I don't get what's wrong with saying all lives matter and not just black ones guys."

[@AmericaTheFatherland]

What is your response to my comment, @NotAVampire?

[@kittydecay6658]

Pulling the fire alarms without a fire is illegal asf then taking their clothes? But oh what Franky and the team did but she gets blamed? They all did it. But shay its because daddy can buy the way out again. Like the whole degrassi nudes they were going to say she did it all like wtf

[@markhizine849]

The whole season was trash

[@NotAVampyre]

Why do you say that?

[@markhizine849]

The feminist thing did it for me how is taking away one of there bathrooms when u both have the same amount eqaul

[@NotAVampyre]

You realize that was in season one right? This is season 2...

[@kelsey1467]

I wish they made kara more sympathetic she should of said she was sorry for the prank I didn't feel very sorry for her in the end

[@briannafry7936]

U sound like imogen lollllll

[@NotAVampyre]

Haha. I was told I sound like Frankie. I don't know what to think >

[@briannafry7936]

NotAVampyre probably both actually

[@sammute6065]

people fail to realise lola is white too

[@chimanruler15]

The writing is still flawed even with all these points in mind. First, you cannot have the victim in this episode do something horrible and then complain when someone retaliates. You don't get to say (or act like), "Hey, I did what is essentially harassment, but we can forget about that because race politics are far more important!" No, get that idea out of here. This seems to be a recurring problem with many plots that try to show the audience that two wrongs don't make a right. They often fail to make the first party sympathetic enough or to give the audience a reason to feel remorse. This is one of those plots. Don't get me wrong. Racism sucks, and we all should do our best to fight it, but you don't get to use racism as an excuse to mentally airbrush your wrongdoings or to take the focus off other issues. It comes off as preachy and hypocritical. That's most likely not what the writers intended, but it is how they're coming off, plot contrivance or not. So, no, I'm not feeling sorry for Kara or her teammates...not as much as the writers want me to. Maybe if the opposing team had done a prank that was tamer, then I'd feel more sympathetic, but they didn't. Second, there seems to be a faulty idea floating around among the characters. Yes, no one is saying that Frankie has it easy in life because she's white, but people seem to be under the assumption that Frankie can't experience any sort of "microaggressions," prejudice, or racism simply because she's white. That in itself is prejudice, and it baffles me that no one sees the irony in such a faulty assumption. Now, I'm not here to debate what race experiences the most prejudice, but my issue here is that people seem to think that Frankie can't experience prejudice period. Just because of her race. It's nonsensical. Third, the way the writers tried to show Frankie's underlying racism was flawed. They thought that Frankie closing her car door instinctively showed that she was subconsciously racist, but it only proved that she was subconsciously sexist. Most people would close their car door if they saw an unfamiliar man approaching them. The same cannot be said for approaching women. This isn't to say that race isn't a factor at all, but sex is still a greater factor. There could have been a much better way to show Frankie's unintentional racism, but the writers chose the wrong example for it. In the end, I didn't find this episode enjoyable at all. The writers could have done a better job showing just how unintentional and subconscious racism can be, but they failed. And, this is all coming from a black person. Personally, I didn't find the poster offensive. I just didn't care about it, and I couldn't see the racism in it. Maybe if more people on the poster were drawn like monkeys and such, I would see the racism better, but that wasn't the case. And, almost everyone in the school seemed to feel that the poster was racist. That doesn't mean I should.

[@maximusprime3459]

This storyline would've been better if they'd done it with the early Next Generation cast...

[@NotAVampyre]

Why?

[@Evieteresa]

7:26 You meant "subconscious" here, not "unconscious".

[@NotAVampyre]

Likely. I've heard them used interchangeably, so that's how my mind has categorized them.

[@Evieteresa]

@@NotAVampyre Same. It's a common error.

[@jemportal4166]

I don't think It's possible to not be a racist in a colonized space, built from the ground up on race-based disparities. I equate the pervasiveness of racism to a blood disease that we don't have a cure for right now. Literally everyone's infected, it's just that by virtue of our societal design, certain populations experience much more aggressive symptomology than others; and i don't think the fatigue that comes as a result of such intense symptomology is explored very often either. So often in film that examines race relations, the character(s) baring the brunt of racist behavior, at the end of the day, does manage to muster up the strength to be the "bigger person," no matter how egregious the offense, and no matter how much pain said offense caused them. Perhaps "Degrassi" is not the show to explore this, but I'd love to see a YA show that dives a bit deeper into that fatigue. What does it look like when a marginalized young person is too tired to create resolve? I think that would be interesting.

[@gerogimenez948]

I’m not completely agree yet

[@NotAVampyre]

Anything in particular make you say that?

[@gerogimenez948]

NotAVampyre sorry, I didn’t get the point

[@BlackRose-rp7kv]

Like in theory I agree but idk I just can’t imagine someone who isn’t a 10 year but someone who is aware and conscious about what they say and do. Do you actually believe she saw the schools name is zoo and depicted them as monkeys and that’s it. In real life the reality is the person would think about it and think oh they are black people, and not depict them as monkeys unless they wanted to test what they can get away with and use the schools name being the zoo as something to fall back on If she was a 10 year old then sure but she’s not she’s conscious and aware about what she says and thinks. They depict her as above average basically a genius in the show especially socially she is quick witted but chose this for her it felt so random.

[@NotAVampyre]

I definitely disagree that they depict her as a genius. Good at volleyball and school yes, but def not a genius. Look how much she struggles in the show to understand her own emotions and wants, how to express them, and how her focused she could be. Frankie was no where near perfect, and the fact she viewed things so much from her perspective is why this happened. Maybe at some point Frankie learned Black people were portrayed as monkeys and gorillas, but that wasn't at the forefront of her mind to consider because she never lived that reality. On top of being white and rich, she lives in a time where the people around her pretend racism is over and a problem of the past. She doesn't have conversations with people of color about how their realities differ from her own because she doesn't need to think about it. She can read it in a history book and move on with her day. This is the first time she's forced to actually confront the fact that she lives in a world that treats her better because of her skin color and that ignoring that causes real pain. I extra believe that this is believable because ...I've lived it. It has taken me into my 20's to understand how much racism we still accept today as white people from the images on our products to our insults. We accept it because they've never been used to harm or belittle us, so we don't think about it. We're told racism was solved and that we live in a post racism world and any living forms of racism can be solved with an after school special. For most of my life, I technically knew about racism and some of the iconography. But, I never questioned it when my school did black face for a play. I never considered that people today may still be harmed by racists practices used to hurt their forefathers. My privilege made it so I could just carry on blind. And Frankie would've as well if not for this incident. Considering those unlike ourselves is something learned, not inherent with age. If that were the case, we wouldn't have racism to begin with.

[@julianG1212]

Where are their pac man heads

[@NotAVampyre]

What?

[@ghanacryptogurl3574]

I don't get it. They drew all of them as animals. I get it but damn her friends did her bad. I mean they all drew then as animals. Years ago people thought a lot of black people were animals not just gorillas.

[@daniquesmith3788]

Frankie made a racist drawing. That's true. But, she didn't know it was, and she didn't mean to hurt them like that. They're called the zoo and that's why she drew random animals, which was a gorilla included. She didn't think about it, because she didn't know about the racist history. She did hurt people, but she didn't mean it. But still, she hurt them, and should've listened and truly apologized. Not defending herself, we know you didn't mean it, but you did do it. She had to understand what she did instead of blindly defending herself. She didn't recognize what she did. Which makes her not a racist.

[@smokythebear1004]

It felt like it could’ve even resolved if they explained it to her right away instead of refusing to educate her at first just continued to say it. Yes it is bad so educate her. They didn’t need countless discussion with Frankie hurting them more without knowing why. I don’t like the argument that’s it’s not someone’s job to educate. Then how will anyone learn? By hopefully having friends or social media crucify her till she gets it..hopefully? The other team seemed set on making it worse and trapping her into saying more and more incriminating things and surprised when she gets defensive. She learned at th end but I can’t help feeling she’d learn quicker if they skipped all the things in the middle. And jsut talked. I get the other team being offended but I think the message would be way better if they reacted with education and understanding. And not put everyone who makes a racist comment in the same box. Don’t get me wrong intentional or not it’s still racism but how you approach hard hate filled racism with a slip up of ignorance should vary. Someone who hates women is sexist and should be hated but someone who makes a sexist comment without understanding the implications should be looked at as why, and then how do we show her. Clearly the response jsut made Frankie double down and that’s not how you brinf upon change. Especially with factors leading up to it. Frankie being naked in front of the school, them being called the zoo, people on her team never said anything, etc.

[@NotAVampyre]

It's also important to note Frankie never asked questions or sought education either. She just kept saying she's not racist

[@smokythebear1004]

@@NotAVampyre and at that point you educate. I’m an immigrant and whenever someone makes a ignorant statement about where I came from or my religion you can’t look for those to ask questions. You look for those who need answers. It’s cool you have your opinion and I have mine. I chose to educate those even when they don’t ask because guess what people often times are so defensive about an attack on them when they know it’s not what they meant. Communication works both ways if they can’t for whatever reason communication a need for answers then I can’t be to proud not to give them. Labeling people forever will never cause growth in the end of prejudice.

[@truthseeker9249]

But there are much worse things to cry about. Wah wah wah she made a racist drawing. Who cares? Black people are shot dead every day by the police, by regular every day white people and even by each other. People are DYING. From racism. A racist drawing is the last thing anyone should get cancelled over. People today are so sensitive I swear to God.

[@conlon4332]

I never thought she was. She may not have handled everything in the best way, but she never meant any harm. It always seemed to me that her only real crime was ignorance, and she certainly didn't deserve what she got. There was a lot she was unaware of, but that's totally forgivable, especially considering how young she was. It's perfectly reasonable for her to not be very well educated on those topics yet by her age. It's not really her fault or possibly even a bad thing. They say ignorance is bliss, and that's ok when you're young. The poor innocent girl who was barely past childhood was really thrown into the deep end of a very difficult subject. Her solution was way too over simplified, but can one really expect her to understand the nuance at her age? These are just my original thoughts on the subject - I haven't watched the video yet.

[@conlon4332]

I forgot how defensive she was. That... wasn't great. I tend to like to forget about this because I found it so annoying. She really wasn't treated fairly for her mistake, and I think her school should have tried to protect her more. For one thing, an adult from the school should have sat her down, explained everything, and talked her through how to apologise properly. I was also very annoyed by her everytime she got it wrong and made everything worse. I was just 'cringing' as people say, as she spoke, and could just foresee how badly it was going. It was very unpleasant, and, as I said, annoying, to watch her make bad decisions I wouldn't have and could see how they would go, and know that she couldn't, and there's was nothing I could do about any of it. I would have unreserved apologized, even if I didn't feel quite as sincere as what I was saying, because I would've known that was what was needed. I mean - I would have explained how I didn't mean any harm and didn't know, then I would have said I was so sorry, I would never have done it if I'd known, and I really regretted it and all the harm it had caused. Even if you feel you didn't really do anything wrong and don't deserve what you're getting, it doesn't help to say that. I hated watching her digging herself in deeper, and that nobody properly explained things to her.

[@conlon4332]

@@coneyandfriends3618 It depends on the circumstance. I think sometimes you kinda have to... if you want to mend relationships with someone. It's a hard line to explain, but especially if I can see where they're coming from and why they're upset... you know, I am sorry I upset them/caused problems. I won't apologise if I think I am in no way shape or form in the wrong, but honestly I think that's very rare, and it gets to a point where it's just worth it to move on.

[@conlon4332]

@@coneyandfriends3618 But to answer your original question anyway, no it's not often. Generally we can agree we're both partly in the wrong.

[@pamelamurillo2966]

I think it isracist. You have to be careful about comments you make about certain plp (or drawings you make) having the privilege of being able to ignore or be ignorant about it is racist even if u didnt mean it to be. We think that only the bad upfront "I hate black plp" person is racist but just being ignorant can be taken as racist too bc you are doing the harm by putting that label in that person again, even if you didnt mean to or you didnt know the history. Just like with the n word, even if you say it without knowing its offensive it's still racist bc you could put the idea in other ppls heads that it's okay to say it wich would feed to the racist culture that we have, just like with her drawing bc there is a history behind drawing black plp as monkeys to oppress them. If you're not trying to inform yourself your probably feeding into the racism without noticing, wich is why we have a racist system, it's like the saying "if your not part of the solution your probably part of the problem", wich is really true when it comes to this. You have a responsibility to inform yourself about this so you dont accidentally feed into the problem and if you dont care enough to try to research about it then your a racist.

[@pamelamurillo2966]

Still think they shouldn't have isolated her like that, that's so toxic and also feeds into a racist system by canceling plp when ever they make a mistake like that which then makes it so difficult for plp to accept (edit: theit mistake) or call out others when they are racist. I'm sure if someone would have taken the time to explain why it was racist she would have apologised but because they isolated her like that she got defensive and it took so much more time for her to accept her mistake, sometimes they never accept their mistake bc they get canceled like that and continue to be racist without noticing.

[@truthseeker9249]

Let me take a minute to remind you that people are dying because of the worst of racism. We as black people are shot dead every day by the police, by regular every day white people and by each other. We should crying about that and fighting to make that change instead of getting hung up and little things like this. Besides, in my opinion the group of people who committed a s*xual offense against another group of people don't get to be offended about anything. Because yes. What Northern Tech did is exactly that. Forcing someone to be naked in public is a huge personal violation that could have you facing charges. Not to mention the false fire alarm aspect of it. Causing a panic also gets you in big trouble for good reason. This whole episode would have been different if Northern Tech's prank wasn't a s*xual offense.

[@rayasunshine8360]

Omfg, I'm commenting before I watch, but I can't wait for a yt person to tell me that the racist yt wasn't racist and I just don't get it.

[@NotAVampyre]

Probably better if you watch before commenting.....

[@dess7301]

@@NotAVampyre you're white and saying something isn't racist when it definitely was , keep your opinions on black convos to yourself.

[@NotAVampyre]

I called this comment in the video. Maybe actually explain why I wrong instead of using my skin color as the beginning and ending of why I'm wrong. Did you comment instead of watching too?

[@LollyWasabi_]

I’m an African American Female and I think she was racist and if you don’t see it you’re just as racist as she is . Drawing or calling a human being a “Monkey” , “Gorilla” or an “Ape” is a derogatory raciest name to call ANY person of color . Being racist is a choice . Being smart and understanding what African American or people of color been through and knowing what’s a joke and what’s racist is a decision . Be wise and educate yourself on the topic of racism before claiming it as a joke as a line of defense due to being dense or un-emotional about the topic

[@wonhosgirlfriend206]

Facts 💯

[@exondiawasabisauce3855]

I couldn’t have said that better myself

[@deathwish7448]

I’m white and I was really offended about Frankie’s racism ... That girl is seriously messed up

[@chaeonix7088]

Well said !! She’s a messed up character..

[@Craig_Montalbano]

This plot was too forced in my opinion

[@NotAVampyre]

How so?

[@Craig_Montalbano]

At first I thought seemed kinda like how the hockey team said Eli’s play Romeo and Jules supports suicide which was just an excuse for revenge. Also shay not being involved in the banner seemed like at attempt to make the story stronger. The fire alarm prank only got mentioned once after the banner incident which northern tech never payed any real consequences with the staff of Degrassi or even the law, not saying the banner was appropriate in any way even if it wasn’t zoo animals. I understand what they were trying to pull off with how someone can be in denial with there actions whether it’s an accident or not but realistically Frankie should have just apologized earlier instead of the end of the season and could have asked for an apology for the fire alarm prank which never even happened. Like if they did apologize and Frankie still was in denial it would be a whole different matter.

[@NotAVampyre]

But having Frankie give a real apology right away defeats the point of the story. Fact is that many people consider themselves not racist but then talk over POC, accept racist dog whistles and charicatures as harmless, and don't even consider the experiences of non white folk unless other white people are already doing it. This arc is to call out and encourage growth from these kinds of people. People like Frankie who live as though racism is solved and how she already sees the world is correct so she doesn't need diverse voices. Have her apologize right away takes away that important nuance.

[@user-vp7vg2lp4p]

For sure she's not.

[@NotAVampyre]

Yes. That's the point of the video.

[@user-db7om5wu5j]

You said that Frankie "chose to be defensive rather than actually listen". Well all the girls who were blaming her also "chose to be offensive instead of actually listening" to her. It goes both ways.

[@NotAVampyre]

Not really. They didn't get the chance to listen because Frankie never let it get to that point. She kept the conversation at "you're wrong, I'm innocent". There wasn't a chance for other to listen until she stopped ignoring the fact that whether she intended on it, she hurt people. And remember, people listened when Frankie stopped being defensive. Kara immediately heard her out and forgave her.

[@user-db7om5wu5j]

@@NotAVampyre I get that. But then again, no one was willing to hear her out either. They just oytright labelled her as racist. The only person who gave her the benefit of the doubt was shay.

[@NotAVampyre]

The Degrassi team was hearing her out. Up until she made the "those people" comment after her "sorry you got offended" not apology. They would still sit with her at lunch, which they didn't want to do after they thought it clear that Frankie was probably racist.

[@user-db7om5wu5j]

and what about the opposing team? Were they willing to listen her out or had they already decided that she did what she did out of racism, not to get back at them for the shower incident? They n ever gave her the benefit of the doubt since the beginning. They were at fault too. Frankie *DID IN FACT* make things messier, but her actions that led to the initial conflict were not born of some innate racism.

[@NotAVampyre]

Yes they didn't give it the benefit of the doubt, but when Shay tells Kara the drawing was not meant to be offensive, Kara conceded that. But as she rightfully points out, it still caused real hurt, and by refusing to admit that it seemed that, the Degrassi team was possibly protecting a racist if not simply just being that "it was just a joke" jerk. It's also hard not to see targetted racism in it when your life is filled with people judging you based on your race. As Kara tells Shay, she's experienced "just saying" type racism in people asking how many baby daddies she has or assuming that she can't swim all because of the color of your skin. When someone is constantly reminded that they're not white, they become accustomed to "harmless" pranks having a sharper meaning.

[@kfire2567]

Frankie is not racist. It's just that people are so sensitive.

[@NotAVampyre]

While I agree Frankie isn't racist (that's my point of the video), the problem isn't sensitivity. Kara is right to suspect racism because there people in the world who do similar things and mean it to be racist. It got even more suspicious when Frankie wouldn't admit she accidentally did something wrong and like you blamed everyone else.

[@MetalX-zt2ws]

NotAVampyre but when the girls from the other school takes their clothes away publicly, they get a free pass & never feel ashamed of it?

[@NotAVampyre]

I also brought up in my video that them seeing no consequences for doing so is a big plot contrivance and the team should've at least been banned from a few games. But as I also said, it allowed for a good and important story to be told. It is still a problem, but a forgivable one.

[@MetalX-zt2ws]

NotAVampyre I agree with you on that, but when it comes to stuff posting a racial picture based on a school name, it’s the end of the world for them. I know the drawing on monkey does have a hidden meaning behind it but it’s less worse than comparing actual dangerous things like Drugs, I violence, sex, etc.

[@NotAVampyre]

Again, we know it was based on a name, but that wasn't so clear to Northern Tech because they don't follow the Degrassi kids like we do. It could also have been seen as just an excuse to justify sneaking in actually intended racial slamming, which many actual rascists will do.

[@rebeckada]

Yes, she is.

[@NotAVampyre]

How so?

[@robertjames7014]

We live in a society where greeting black customers in a store is racist.....and it's also racist if you don't greet them. So, it doesn't surprise me that this liberal show is claiming this was racist.

[@EgyptNile]

We live in a society that black costumers are followed like we are going to rob the story and someone wearing brown and wearing a head covering is treated like a terrorist.