Actor Jeremy Tardy has decided to leave the Netflix show “Dear White People” because of what he claims to be “racial discrimination.”
Tardy’s evidence for said discrimination?
A white actor on the show was offered more money than him.
In a series of tweets Friday, Tardy, who is black, laid out specifically what his problem was: While a white co-star was able to negotiate for higher pay after an initial offer, Lionsgate informed Tardy that the company’s initial offer to him was its final one.
“Unfortunately I will not be joining NETFLIX’s Dear White People for its fourth and final season due to my experience with Lionsgate and their practices of racial discrimination,” Hardy wrote.
“After being offered to return for several episodes my team was notified that our counter offer would not be considered and that the initial offer was the ‘best and final’.
“This news was disturbing because one of my white colleagues — being a true ally — revealed that they too had received the same initial offer and had successfully negotiated a counter offer.”
The actor then went on to claim that this was a clear example of systemic discrimination despite the fact that there is no evidence suggesting he was treated differently because of the color of his skin.
“The fact that this has occurred behind the scenes of a show which purports to address systemic issues of racism and discrimination displays the very epitome of hypocrisy. Lionsgate. Netflix. I see you. We see you,” Hardy tweeted.
Perhaps Hardy was treated unfairly because of his race. There’s no way of proving his assertions in this case are incorrect.
However, the opposite is true as well: There is absolutely no evidence suggesting that Hardy was treated differently because of his race. Maybe he simply wasn’t as valuable to the show as the colleague who was paid more than him.
It is unlikely that, in such a hyper-politicized age, a media company would willingly pay an actor more or less based solely on their race.
Most likely, the other actor or actress was paid better than Hardy based on performance, or perhaps based on popularity. After all, actors and actresses who attract more viewers have a better argument to make that they should be paid more.
When it comes to these situations, however, the left doesn’t care about nuance.
They simply see instances like this as an opportunity to point out that society is irredeemably racist and needs to be remade as a brand new, progressive utopia where everything is free and everyone is paid the same.
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