"Chewing Gum," Not So Bubble Gum

I recently discovered Chewing Gum, a British series about a sexually repressed African immigrant woman in her twenties attempting to discover her sexuality under her mother's overbearing and zealous religious nose. It's a comedy. It's a little bit of bubblegum laced with  over sexualized themes. I appreciate it because it's relatable coming from a similar cultural experience. Discovering myself as a woman in a strict cultural setting was rather challenging. I never felt I could discuss sex with my parents. I didn't start dating until much later in life because I pretty much wasn't allowed to go anywhere until I found my independence in my mid twenties. Perhaps it made me a better person, a wiser person. Or perhaps it just made me a little awkward. In any case, this show explores that: the danger of over glorifying sex, of dogma, of strict parenting. It also exposes the truth about our culture in that no matter how sexually liberated and knowledgeable we appear, we remain very much prudish and unsure of our bodies, the purpose and value of sex and why we are here.

On a side note, I do feel like black women in film are either depicted as overly sexualized or repressed. It's time for a new narrative on the black girl experience that is not centered on our sexuality.