The upcoming Netflix show Dear White People only just dropped its trailer Wednesday, and it has already caused an uproar with expected parties.
The 10-episode series is an adaption of Justin Simien’s 2014 movie of the same name. Like the film, the series follows black students as they navigate a predominantly white Ivy League school where racial issues are often swept under the rug.
The trailer is set up as PSA with people of color on campus asking white students to refrain from using black-face during Halloween festivities
But the response to the trailer has taken a similar thread as when the film was first announced. Some immediately decried the Netflix show as reverse racism, even calling for a boycott of the streaming service. The trailer has almost a million views by Thursday evening.
But creator Simien was quick the slam the boycott, which doesn’t appear to have picked up much steam. He says the show has no racist intent, according to the Huffington Post.
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“Equality feels like oppression to the privileged and thus three benign words send them into a fight for their very existence, which happens to it actually not [being] in any real danger,” Simien said. “This is how a minute long date announcement becomes a distorted call for white genocide in the minds of some people. Despite all signs to the contrary.”
He also took to his Facebook page to respond to the accusations of the show being “racist” and “anti-white”.
Dear White People debuts April 28 on Netflix.