People on social media are fiercely pushing for Viola Davis’ new movie, “The Woman King,” to be boycotted, claiming it “whitewashes” the history of the subject depicted. Twitter users, in particular, were quick to do their fact-checking regarding the controversial film. One of the most critical parts of the motion picture is the portrayal of the Dahomey African tribe and its all-female military regiment, the Agodjie, who are viewed as empowering liberators, but, in real life, contributed to captivating thousands of slaves before selling them to the Europeans in exchange for weapons in the 17th, 18th, and 19th century.
It wasn’t until the mid-1800s when the Dahomey tribe was forced to stop selling its Black saves, which people on social media say is a far cry from the way the movie has been presented — particularly its marketing campaign. Some even called out how “The Woman King” trailer makes it seem as if Davis is simply training a group of female recruits against white colonizers, stressing that the motion picture has completely rewritten history while failing to acknowledge the corruption that came with the tribe’s slave trading ways.
Let’s be honest folk. It’s movie about a African tribe famous for selling slaves to Europeans that was made into a female empowerment story by two White women writers. You don’t have to be very “woke” to see the problem here.#BoycottWomanKing pic.twitter.com/Mk5dpvsBUk
— Edward (@EqualityEd) September 16, 2022
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“Let’s be honest folks. It’s a movie about an African tribe famous for selling slaves to Europeans that was made into a female empowerment story by two White women writers. You don’t have to be very “woke” to see the problem here,” one Twitter user wrote. Another person continued the conversation, adding, “I will #BoycottWomanKing the movie! Never Forget is not a slogan. It’s a call to action from the ancestors. You can’t repackage the Dahomey Kingdom whose economy was built on slave trading and expect support from the children of the enslaved.”
The hashtag #BoycottWomanKing, which trended over the weekend, saw others weigh in with their thoughts, continuing, “Being a Black woman doesn’t absolve you from wrong-doing. We must be accountable for our actions as well. Glorifying slave traders is reprehensible. Just own it.”
Another chimed in, “It’s like asking Jews to watch a “feel-good” movie about the Nazis…on the Sabbath.”
Being a Black woman doesn’t absolve you from wrong-doing. We must be accountable for our actions as well. Glorifying slave traders is reprehensible. Just own it. #BoycottWomanKing https://t.co/zzdscHZ9Jl
— Yvette Carnell
(@BreakingBrown) September 18, 2022
Twitter is undefeated. I had no idea these women were actually deep in the slave trade. I’ll pass. #BoycottWomanKing
— ba4hire (@ba4hire) September 16, 2022
#BoycottWomanKing is trending! I’m glad I’m not the only one who refuses to watch revisionist history Black girl magic propaganda!
— Afro American Jay
(@AfroAmericanJay) September 16, 2022
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Others, who have already seen the film, say that the Viola-led flick does tackle those subjects that many have complained about on social media, saying that while it’s not shown in the trailer, it’s a central topic that delves into the horrors of the slave trade and how it affected black women, in particular.
Another Twitter user, who was determined not to be shaken by negative reviews, said, “I’m not trusting any hashtag that tries to get a Black women-led movie to fail. I’ll see it for myself and if it’s bad or spins history in a negative way so be it. But Viola & John are going to get my movie dollars. Suck on that, bots & ops.”
The post Social Media Left Divided Over People Urging Others To Boycott Viola Davis’ ‘The Woman King’ Because It ‘Glorifies Slavery’ appeared first on Hollywood Unlocked .