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Quinta Brunson, Jimmy Kimmel, and the White Compulsion to Ruin Moments for Black People
Last night, Quinta Brunson won her first Emmy for the show she created, writes for, produces, and stars in Abbot Elementary. In fact, Brunson was nominated for three Emmys, the most ever for a Black woman in comedy. Abbot Elementary won two Emmys last night — out of seven nominations. Costar Sheryl Lee Ralph became only the second Black woman to win an Emmy for outstanding supporting actress in a comedy series. Jackeé Harry won 35 years ago for her role as Sandra Clark on 227. This highlights how rare it is for Black women to win Emmys especially in comedy.
Brunson, thirty-two, started her career by making comedy videos on her Instagram. She later co-starred in A Black Lady Sketch Show, where it was clear she was destined for superstardom. Brunson built her career on her own from the ground up, creating opportunity after opportunity for herself.
Unfortunately, Brunson’s award was presented by comedians Will Arnett and Jimmy Kimmel. Kimmel and Arnett were supposedly performing a “sketch.” The sketch, which was both unfunny and made no sense, included Kimmel lying on the stage floor pretending to be passed out drunk. Apparently, according to the sketch, he had too much to drink because he was upset he lost his 13th Emmy nomination for his late night talk show Jimmy Kimmel…
