It seems that Obama releasing his birth certificate to confirm his American birth has encouraged others to verify Black people’s statements about their own lives. This trend continued on the recent Reunion episode of CBS’s Survivor: Redemption Island.
Throughout the show, Philip Sheppard maintained that he was a former special agent for the United States government. Yet nobody, even Survivor host Jeff Probst, believed him.
During the Reunion episode, Jeff Probst went to great lengths to satisfy disbelieving tribe mates and audience members and “prove” that Phillip was once a special agent. Not only did Phillip explain what agencies he served with, Jeff also brought someone from Phillip’s past on the show to “authenticate” his testimony and verify his credentials. Oh brother.
I doubt CBS would devote much airtime to proving any other cast member’s occupation. Don’t they verify these things during in the screening process?
But if in fact, this birther movement has opened up a new era of “black proof” then I guess we should all be prepared for more digging.
Related: Does ‘Crazy’ = the N-Word? A Heated Racial Debate On Last Night’s ‘Survivor’
