Recently on the reality show Big Brother, an alliance called The Cookout was able to do something that has never been done before in the show’s history, bringing all its members to the final six. What makes this alliance so special is that it consists of all the Black members of the house. From the minute they all saw one another for the first time in the house, there was an unspoken pact that none of them would target the others and they quickly formed their alliance on the first day. Now, this tremendous accomplishment did not come without its criticism. Many viewers of the show have called out this alliance and accused them of reverse racism and deliberately evicting houseguests simply because they are not Black. Statements like these show the importance of this alliance and why it was necessary based on the show’s history.
I have been watching the show since its 14th season in 2012 and for the number of years I’ve been watching, there has been a clear problem with how the show is cast. Every season has the same casting formula where over 90% of the house is White, and they sprinkle 2 (maybe 3) minorities who ultimately never have a chance at winning and are almost always evicted very early in the game. It isn’t that there’s an issue with having a majority White cast, but when it happens season after season for over 20 years, it makes you wonder how fair the game really is for Blacks and other people of color.
The following clip shows the formation of The Cookout on Day 1. You can hear Tiffany state that they need to make sure that they are never all seen meeting together because it would make the other houseguests suspicious that they are all working together which is why two members are missing. They were able to follow through with this plan, and for the entire game, no one ever suspected the six of them being in an alliance together.
The turning point for the show came two years ago during the 21st season of the show, where the first three houseguests evicted were all minorities (the first two were black, and the third was south Asian). It wasn’t only that they were the first three evicted, it was also the way they were treated. The majority alliance that season, Gr8ful (named because of its eight members), instructed the other houseguests not to talk or communicate with them making them all social pariahs and easier to evict because of it. It was disgusting and sad to witness, but it shined a light on the issue that CBS had with casting, and after that season, they pledged to have at least 50% POC on all their reality shows (Big Brother, Amazing Race, and Survivor).
The difference between The Cookout and other majority alliances in prior seasons like Gr8ful in season 21 is that they never made it their mission to exclude or isolate any other houseguest. In fact, all the members of the alliance all formed stronger bonds with members outside of their own alliance, but ultimately had to sacrifice them in order to fulfill their mission of bringing the six of them to the end. The mission was never to evict people because they aren’t Black, it was created for them to all give each other a chance at winning the show, after the horrible history the show has had with treating minorities. What’s best is that all the eliminated houseguests of this season have received this alliance well. They all understood the mission and did not take it personally that they fell victim to this alliance. They all felt outplayed for never realizing that the six of them were even working together.
Even though my favorite member Tiffany was the first member of the alliance to be evicted from the game, I am still thrilled to know that there will at least be a winner this season who looks like me. The last standing members are Azah, Xavier, and Derek. If you are interested in seeing who wins, tune in to CBS this Wednesday at 9pm EST where the winner of Big Brother 23 will be crowned live!
The Junction Journal 