S13.E08: A Harlem Night

[PrincessPurrsALot]

Quote

Eboni hosts the ladies for an educational night in Harlem where Ramona introduces the group to her friend Bershan. Luann bonds with her daughter over their sobriety while Leah stresses over her daughter’s upcoming high school experience. And, over cocktails at Ramona's apartment, Eboni and Ramona's friendship gets put to the test.

Original air date 2021.06.29

Note:  There is an extra week break between episodes.

Again issues surrounding race and the lives and experiences of black persons in America are likely to be discussed.  Please limit discussion to topics raised on the show and, as always, be civil.  

[stcroix]

How rude of Eboni to monopolize the conversation when visiting Ramona.  It would have felt like having a Jehova's Witness in my home suddenly start loudly preaching at me that I was going to hell if I didnt agree with their religion at that instant! Very rude.  

I zoomed through all Leah's parts-- she irritates me just looking at her.  And her woke act is getting old.  

I need a drink to calm me down after watching and zooming through that sh#t show.

[lamujerdecente]

I feel like Eboni was hired to do this but I am starting to think she is enjoying doing this and anyone who wades in the waters of explaining white supremacy ain’t having fun. 
Eboni’s time at Fox News is starting to show, I judge everyone who would work there and I gave u a chance lady but sheesh Leah as James Baldwin. Still not over that.

Google him for those who can’t understand why I am here dry heaving with Electra. 

[CSunshine76]

Good Lord. Eboni won’t allow any other conversations. Why does everything have to be so serious all the damn time?!

Also, my dear Ramona, you are in your own home….you can’t leave. But you can ask your guest to leave! God I love her and her quirkiness!

[pieinmyeye]

Damn, Leah. Why don’t you ask Eboni to bend over so you can have easier access to kiss her ass.

[lamujerdecente]

Ramona is such a snob about New York but she is sooooooooooooo TACKY. Wtf was she wearing? At her house?

 

a nice thing about Leah, she looked nice at the Harlem Party. Cuz she was in costume. 

Edited June 30, 2021 by lamujerdecente

[Steph J]

7 minutes ago, chick binewski said:

I'm fine talking politics. What I have a problem with is listening to someone who took a paycheck to spout one set of beliefs and is now taking a new paycheck to put it all in reverse. 

I'm not familiar with Eboni's work on Fox News, but wasn't she a "counterpoint" personality? I mean, that was my assumption because the first episode showed headlines saying she was getting death threats after denouncing Trump's response to Charlottesville.

I think talking politics is fine, too, and I think that friends should be able to talk about anything and everything under the sun, but I can't blame the women if they find it off-putting that the ratio of "fun" to "serious" is so unbalanced. Sometimes you're up for getting into the nitty gritty, but some times you just want to have a drink and talk nonsense.

[Feech]

This is the thread where Eboni comes to lecture you until you change the channel.

[emmawoodhouse]

Found the episode thread! Man, it was BURIED! 

[sistermagpie]

1 minute ago, Steph J said:

I think talking politics is fine, too, and I think that friends should be able to talk about anything and everything under the sun, but I can't blame the women if they find it off-putting that the ratio of "fun" to "serious" is so unbalanced. Sometimes you're up for getting into the nitty gritty, but some times you just want to have a drink and talk nonsense.

It's not even that Eboni's always serious, but that so much of what she's saying doesn't come up organically. She just has her thing she's going to say and it's not always a conversation even if she's technically responding to the person. The whole convo with Ramona seemed that way to me. Ironically, I think we got a lot about Ramona's personal political beliefs in there--more than Eboni's!

[thefog]

Eboni and her so-called bestie Leah have made the show unwatchable. HW is supposed to be fun, entertaining TV. Vulgar Leah and Preacher Eboni are neither.

[Feech]

Sort of like the likability of this series.

[Koalagirl]

Ramona told us who she voted for without telling us who she voted for.

As much as I like Eboni I’m annoyed that I have to agree with Ramona. Sometimes I just want to be lighthearted with my friends and not have to go deep with them.

[lamujerdecente]

12 minutes ago, Steph J said:

I'm not familiar with Eboni's work on Fox News, but wasn't she a "counterpoint" personality? I mean, that was my assumption because the first episode showed headlines saying she was getting death threats after denouncing Trump's response to Charlottesville.

I think talking politics is fine, too, and I think that friends should be able to talk about anything and everything under the sun, but I can't blame the women if they find it off-putting that the ratio of "fun" to "serious" is so unbalanced. Sometimes you're up for getting into the nitty gritty, but some times you just want to have a drink and talk nonsense.

I avoid that “channel” unless I am trolling BUT it’s not a place you can realistically think you are going to get a fair and unbiased narrative on. This seems like the same kind of uphill battle Eboni is climbing and the cynic in me doesn’t think it’s for anything but coins. Eboni is coming across as self important as miss Bethany but the sad thing if that even in her misguided attempts and efforts, she proves the racism and the fact that women of color aren’t allowed to just be, we are seen as a monolith, EXIST.  On sight, Besharn and Eboni were different types to me, like Ramona and Leah , lvp and Eileen. The few sentences I heard Besharn say annoyed me, she seems Leah like to me, but she instantly made some folks comfier than Eboni.

Edited June 30, 2021 by lamujerdecente

[chick binewski]

3 minutes ago, Steph J said:

I'm not familiar with Eboni's work on Fox News, but wasn't she a "counterpoint" personality? I mean, that was my assumption because the first episode showed headlines saying she was getting death threats after denouncing Trump's response to Charlottesville.

I think talking politics is fine, too, and I think that friends should be able to talk about anything and everything under the sun, but I can't blame the women if they find it off-putting that the ratio of "fun" to "serious" is so unbalanced. Sometimes you're up for getting into the nitty gritty, but some times you just want to have a drink and talk nonsense.

I know she's stated that she joined Fox to provide another POV; as someone who has watched Fox for 5 minutes I find that stance to be hogwash.

The great thing about NY was that stuff would blow up with very little obvious production interference. Between Leah and Eboni I feel like I'm watching an industrial video.

[goofygirl]

Well, THAT was boring!  I thought the "Harlem Nights" idea SOUNDED good but then it got boring. And preachy.  And then, stick a fork in me - Eboni K. Williams gave LEAH: TWIT OF THE UNIVERSE; JAMES BALDWIN. 

I could barely keep my dinner down.  Kinda thought about having a shot of something but decided not to.  I've just about given up on this shitshow but thought the addition of some "new" women might help.  Now?

I'll just go mop my kitchen floor. Organize my sock drawer. Have a root canal. 

UGH.

Edited June 30, 2021 by goofygirl

[ancslove]

I hate to say it, but Ramona was right and in the right at the end.  And Eboni kind of steamrolled over her and then was able to gloss over the entire bigger issue, once Ramona made an objective mistake.  Eboni was fine to correct her on C.J. Walker, although I understand that moment was just the straw that broke Ramona's back.  But overall, Eboni has been very lecture-y and didactic when having conversations. And it's not just that she's discussing her lived experience, but that she's also discussing her academic field.  And that's not what everyone wants to talk about all the time.  I understand Eboni when she said that she can't just "take a break" from being Black, but that doesn't mean every conversation needs to be an academic presentation.  And her expression when Ramona first asked politely if they could not talk politics was a total "Gotcha".  But Eboni was a guest in Ramona's home, and she should have been polite enough to go with her hostess.

Making her conversation even more difficult is that Eboni throws around social justice buzzwords, but not always correctly.  Ramona wanting to take a break from the stress of every day politics is definitely white privilege, but it isn't gaslighting.  I'd argue that it isn't even really White Fragility.  (If Eboni wants to see White Fragility in action, she should watch Sutton on RHOBH!)  

[WaltersHair]

Wasn't Harlem Nights a bad Eddie Murphy movie set in the 30's?

[faraway]

I liked Eboni a lot more before this episode. She was being preachy at the dinner party. Of course if her talk didn't go on for too long, big deal. What was shown of the party might have been misleading- they may have had more fun than what was shown. 

Her interaction with Ramona was unnecessarily confrontational. On the other hand, Ramona could have discussed having a female vice president even if she didn't vote for her. I'm surprised that Ramona couldn't agree that this is a good thing for our country.  It may have been that the pain of losing the election was too painful for her. 

[Marley]

This episode was torture. Leah and Eboni are totally ruining this show. So going to Harlem means going to a restaurant to listen to Eboni lecture for hours. Would be nice to actually do something there and explore.

Eboni is a complete hypocrite anyways.

Leah needs to stop pretending she’s so much better then the other women. She’s a fake woke bitch.

Watching this gave me a headache.

[sistermagpie]

3 minutes ago, Koalagirl said:

Ramona told us who she voted for without telling us who she voted for.

As much as I like Eboni I’m annoyed that I have to agree with Ramona. Sometimes I just want to be lighthearted with my friends and not have to go deep with them.

The thing about a lot of what Eboni was doing in this ep was it was just a set lecture that had no interaction with anyone or anything else happening. They might as well have been watching one of Luanne's Cabaret acts--only they couldn't get up to anything while in the audience. And no jokes. Or laughter. 

2 minutes ago, ancslove said:

Making her conversation even more difficult is that Eboni throws around social justice buzzwords, but not always correctly.  Ramona wanting to take a break from the stress of every day politics is definitely white privilege, but it isn't gaslighting.  I'd argue that it isn't even really White Fragility.  (If Eboni wants to see White Fragility in action, she should watch Sutton on RHOBH!)  

Yup.

2 minutes ago, ancslove said:

 I understand Eboni when she said that she can't just "take a break" from being Black, but that doesn't mean every conversation needs to be an academic presentation.  And her expression when Ramona first asked politely if they could not talk politics was a total "Gotcha".  But Eboni was a guest in Ramona's home, and she should have been polite enough to go with her hostess.

Also, it seemed like Eboni was kind of doing the kind of thing she claimed she couldn't do with Ramona. That is, Ramona made her politics clear, even if she didn't want to make it part of her public persona on the show (couldn't say it was nice to have a female vp, but didn't want to talk about her problems with this particular vp), and she almost went off on mail in votes being suspicious before Eboni interrupted her. Yet Eboni was saying it didn't matter what Ramona's politics were and was all snuggly with her.

Not that I wanted to see her attacking Ramona or whatever, but it just seems no different at all from what Ramona herself was wanting-to be friends and have fun despite politics. It seemed like the conflict didn't come from conflicting politics, but from Ramona not wanting to make that part of her story.If Ramona had only been able to smile and nod and let Eboni lecture, she might have gotten what she wanted!

[Straycat80]

Worst episode this season! It’s the Eboni and Leah show. And I think the reason Leah trashed Heather so much is because she’s afraid Heather might be asked back and she wants that spot for her boring sister. 

[lamujerdecente]

18 minutes ago, goofygirl said:

Well, THAT was boring!  I thought the "Harlem Nights" idea SOUNDED good but then it got boring. And preachy.  And then, stick a fork in me - Eboni K. Williams gave LEAH: TWIT OF THE UNIVERSE; JAMES BALDWIN. 

I could barely keep my dinner down.  Kinda thought about having a shot of something but decided not to.  I've just about given up on this shitshow but thought the addition of some "new" women might help.  Now?

I'll just go mop my kitchen floor. Organize my sock drawer. Have a root canal. 

UGH.

In the live thread I been disgusted at this. As a Harlem born girl, a writer and POC. GURL.

Edited June 30, 2021 by lamujerdecente

[CSunshine76]

20 minutes ago, ancslove said:

Making her conversation even more difficult is that Eboni throws around social justice buzzwords, but not always correctly.  Ramona wanting to take a break from the stress of every day politics is definitely white privilege, but it isn't gaslighting.  I'd argue that it isn't even really White Fragility.  (If Eboni wants to see White Fragility in action, she should watch Sutton on RHOBH!)  

Not being snarky, but how is it white privilege that Ramona didn’t want to talk about politics? I would think people of all races would feel this way at times.  I love politics and political discussions, but there’s a time and a place. And some days, you’ve had enough and just want light-hearted fun conversations while having a glass of wine.

Edited June 30, 2021 by CSunshine76

[Primal Slayer]

It was a good, well rounded episode. I love Eboni but they aren't wrong that she likes to use her platform to teach. Which is her right if she wants to dedicate her screentime to it just like how Lu was cabaret for lord knows how long BUT...it does get tiresome and we havent gotten to KNOW who Eboni is outside of all of this. Not every moment has to be educating others. 

Now I know that Eboni was a fan of the show so I know that she watched the previous election season and knows that Ramona will not talk politics lol. I was surprised that it ended on a high note but I loved that Ramona was so flustered that she was about to LEAVE HER OWN APARTMENT! She totally forgot where she was lol. 

The new friend of...I'm liking her! Didn't expect her to be introduced via Ramona so that was a change but I have high hopes for her.

[goofygirl]

4 minutes ago, lamujerdecente said:

In the live thread I been disgusted at this. As a Harlem born girl, a writer and POC. GURL.

I'm none of those things and I was just disgusted.

[Hangin Out]

52 minutes ago, CSunshine76 said:

Good Lord. Eboni won’t allow any other conversations. Why does everything have to be so serious all the damn time?!

Also, my dear Ramona, you are in your own home….you can’t leave. But you can ask your guest to leave! God I love her and her quirkiness!

Ramona went into her room to compose herself, then came out and kissed Ebony’s ass.  Another Sonja kiss ass.

[faraway]

RHONY conversations are not the most interesting, no matter which episode or season. None of the ladies has the knack of engaging others in an exchange of ideas. They don’t appear to have a real interest in anything besides materialism and surface ideas, including Eboni.
And then, If all else fails, talk about penises!  

[Hangin Out]

12 minutes ago, Straycat80 said:

Worst episode this season! It’s the Eboni and Leah show. And I think the reason Leah trashed Heather so much is because she’s afraid Heather might be asked back and she wants that spot for her boring sister. 

Hate to say it but I think I would rather see Dorinda fall down drunk than have a lesson from Ebony.  When is she leaving?  Also, what the hell does Leah bring to this show anyhow.  She’s like a teenager who doesn’t have anything of value to say.  Her sister is worse.

[JAYJAY1979]

Ramona talking about peeling the onion was a good one.  Eboni doesn't really want others to know the real Eboni..maybe as a shield.

Can we kick Leah off and have Bershan be a housewife next season?

[Lady of nod]

Good Goddess. Yet  another in a series of lectures from Eboni. I’m so over this. You invited them for a dinner not a goddamn history class.  This woman just really loves to hear herself speak. And speak .  And speak. . Enough already. 

[Thumper]

Still watching.  What happened to Heather?

I don’t want to watch Leah.

[Starlight925]

Bershan is adorable, and seems like such a fun gal.  Hope to see more of her!

Leah needed to hire a consultant for High School?  Whaaa??  Who knew that was a thing?  And am I wrong, or is that the very definition of White Privelege?

[Primal Slayer]

2 minutes ago, Starlight925 said:

Leah needed to hire a consultant for High School?  Whaaa??  Who knew that was a thing?  And am I wrong, or is that the very definition of White Privelege?

It's very S1/2 of RHONY when we saw the other women, spefifically Alex try to get their kids into the best schools. It is a white privilege thing but overall a very rich privilege NY thing

[Momager]

I like Eboni and the perspective she brings to the show, but she was a buzzkill tonight - at a Harlem Nights party, no less! I feel like that’s really hard to do and yet she managed it. Part of the problem is that she wants to talk at people and not with them. 

[chewycandy]

1 hour ago, CSunshine76 said:

Not being snarky, but how is it white privilege that Ramona didn’t want to talk about politics? I would think people of all races would feel this way at times. 

Ramona has privileges in all areas of life simply because of her skin color, whereas Eboni can’t just “take off her blackness and put it in the coat closet” like she mentioned at one point. The issues Eboni wants to talk about affect her much more than they’ll ever affect Ramona, she can’t just hang them up. 

Good ol’ phony Ramona…crawling into someone’s lap and hugging them is her way of putting an end to it and it seems to work every time! She was so ridiculous going into her room and talking to Coco and coming out wearing her Avery necklace. 

Leah surprisingly dressed okay for Harlem night. I thought it was sweet how much thought Eboni put into the dinner, but maybe she should have served them something first before her presentation. 

 

[UsernameFatigue]

Twenty minutes into the episode, I was sure it was half over. Another twenty minutes later, looked at my watch and five minutes had passed. The rest of the episode dragged on too. Ugh. 

I did have to laugh at Eboni using Eboni K. Williams in the literature regarding her dinner. How pretentious. Can this woman ever be just with friends and not act like she is on assignment? But then again, maybe she was. I love that Besharn spoke up and gave her opinion at the dinner, even if it did tick Ebony off. Could Besharn have been saying that she doesn't see colour? Hmmmm.....

Leah always manages to say something (often many things) per episode that has me shaking my head. This time is was that the other women really don't know how offensive they are sometimes. Pot. Kettle. Black. And her talk with Ebony when she called her everything except articulate was pretty funny. 

I didn't get why Leah doesn't want her daughter to go to a public school? And why she needed someone else to be involved? In any case, too much Leah once again. Why do TPTB insist on shoving her down our throats? Gag. 

Edited June 30, 2021 by UsernameFatigue

[ichbin]

1 hour ago, CSunshine76 said:

Not being snarky, but how is it white privilege that Ramona didn’t want to talk about politics? I would think people of all races would feel this way at times.  I love politics and political discussions, but there’s a time and a place. And some days, you’ve had enough and just want light-hearted fun conversations while having a glass of wine.

This was filmed around the time of the election last year.  God knows I was sick of talking about politics then regardless if it were with people who totally agreed or disagreed with my political convictions let alone which demographic they fell into. 

If Eboni is feeling burdened in her role as educator within this group of women, there is an easy way to end that.

Who was Sonja trying to kid with that bullshit about how she stands up for Ramona? She takes any opportunity to speak negatively about the woman.  

Bershan seems like she wants to have fun.  Hope she sticks around for awhile so we can find out.  

Can anyone blame Bunny for wanting to insinuate herself into Kier's life?   

[CSunshine76]

1 hour ago, chewycandy said:

Ramona has privileges in all areas of life simply because of her skin color, whereas Eboni can’t just “take off her blackness and put it in the coat closet” like she mentioned at one point. The issues Eboni wants to talk about affect her much more than they’ll ever affect Ramona, she can’t just hang them up. 

Good ol’ phony Ramona…crawling into someone’s lap and hugging them is her way of putting an end to it and it seems to work every time! She was so ridiculous going into her room and talking to Coco and coming out wearing her Avery necklace. 

Leah surprisingly dressed okay for Harlem night. I thought it was sweet how much thought Eboni put into the dinner, but maybe she should have served them something first before her presentation. 

 

I’m sorry, but I just do not understand how this impacts a conversation about politics. Ramona is well within her rights to not want to have that conversation. In her own home!! It has nothing to do with race or privilege.

I do agree Ramona was too forgiving to then jump in Eboni’s lap. However, there’s nothing wrong with her (or anyone) not wanting to discuss politics while meeting for drinks.

Edited June 30, 2021 by CSunshine76

[Haute Messe]

Eboni and her platform are a complete buzz kill in every situation. I wouldn't want to hang out with somebody who is no fun all.the.damn.time. Wash, rinse, repeat. Fuck this white fragility gaslighting bullshit.

The less said about Leah and her sister the better.

Edited June 30, 2021 by lizajane
Spelling matters

[LemonSoda]

Did we get the unaired Leah and Eboni pilot tonight? Because I didn’t see anything resembling RHONY. 
And will they stop tacking on WWHL? If I wanted to record it myself I would. 

Edited June 30, 2021 by LemonSoda

[SDVegas]

Enough, Eboni

🙄

[Alonzo Mosely FBI]

7 hours ago, CSunshine76 said:

Not being snarky, but how is it white privilege that Ramona didn’t want to talk about politics? 

@chewycandy does a great job explaining it below.  I don't think what Eboni was doing was  "discussing politics", the day after the last election when the results were not even final and we were about to have our first woman VP ever. That is a lot! That's just real life. And more real for some  people than others (not insulated by wealth and whiteness, Ramona!).  The fact that the cast of RHONY as a reality show thought they could conveniently not discuss the election is sort of priveledge in itself. "We don't talk about certain things in our circles" type attitude. Reality bites and hey it is ok to discuss what's going on around us. I don't see it as politics. Calling it politics, Ramona is just another way to not talk about uncomfortable things we don't want to address.

Also, this show is unwatchable. The ep where Ramona gets a black friend and tells Eboni she thinks they'll get along. What a joke. Maybe the worst thing Ramona has ever said. 

6 hours ago, chewycandy said:

Ramona has privileges in all areas of life simply because of her skin color, whereas Eboni can’t just “take off her blackness and put it in the coat closet” like she mentioned at one point. The issues Eboni wants to talk about affect her much more than they’ll ever affect Ramona, she can’t just hang them up. 



 

 

Edited June 30, 2021 by Alonzo Mosely FBI

[NYCFree]

I really like Eboni, and am glad she joined the cast, but the presentation at dinner was too much like a class, rather than an outing.

Regarding Leah’s hiring a consultant for her daughter’s high school search: NYC high schools are COMPLICATED. For just the public schools there are some that have admissions exams, some that have performance or portfolio evaluations, etc. I don’t know much at all about the private school requirements (but I do know the tuition is college like). I know there is a public project-based high school that sounds exactly like what Leah’s daughter is looking for, but I forgot it’s name and I’m too lazy to research right now. I hope the consultant earns her hefty fee and found it, and isn’t just relying on private schools.

Edited June 30, 2021 by NYCFree

[Chatty Cake]

For the love of god, please end this season early. If Eboni truly wanted to educate people she would do it on a different platform. She is full of shit as far as I’m concerned. Leah needs to quit kissing her ass. What did she say “I love discussing race with my black friends “ what a pandering stupid thing to say. 
Then the bullshit at Ramonas home. Okay, it’s obvious who Ramona wanted to win. The fact that it wasn’t looking good for her point of view would have been a great time for Eboni to NOT discuss the election. Ramona said she wanted to escape meaning the constant election coverage and Eboni said she can’t escape being black. What the hell? You can take a break from discussing your cause and still be black. Why doesn’t Eboni find a non profit organization where people (black and white) really can’t take a break from their life and help them? 
I’m guessing the producers pushed Eboni to this and each one of them should be fired.

[MsMalin]

I expected so much more of the Harlem episode than them sitting around at just 1 restaurant.  I thought she would take them around to different sites.

I understand Ramona not wanting to discuss politics nonstop. Perhaps she is just tired of getting grief from everyone,including the viewing audience for being a  republican. Maybe she didn't want to reply to the woman as VP because she didn't think that particular woman was the right choice so she couldn't be happy about it.

 

I have been binge  watching RONY from the beginning and can't believe how different it is now, and I'm not even talking about politics. I am shockI dont tune in to anybHousewives franchise to be lectured about race or politics for vosh sake. There are many better outlets for that!ed at what Sonja has turned into...a bitter out of control drunk. She was so nice and sounded intelligent when first introduced.  Bethany changed from a fun, nice friend into a nasty mean girl.  I don't know if its all an act for the cameras to be outrageous, but it is no longer fun and relaxing to watch which is what I watch for.

 

 

I don't tune in to any Housewives franchise to be educated about race or politics. There are many much better outlets to learn from,lol.

[Boo Boo]

Eboni is irritating AF.  Team Ramona.

[Boo Boo]

Also, does Leah think she's an honorary black person?   

[SweetieDarling]

10 hours ago, ichbin said:

Can anyone blame Bunny for wanting to insinuate herself into Kier's life?

When Leah said that Bunny is involved with every decision she makes about Kier, I thought for sure she was going to say it was because she (Bunny) has primary custody of her.

Edited June 30, 2021 by SweetieDarling
typo

[Mr. Miner]

9 hours ago, Thumper said:

Still watching.  What happened to Heather?

I don’t want to watch Leah.

Heather crawled to freedom through five-hundred yards of shit smelling foulness I can't even imagine, or maybe I just don't want too. Five-Hundred yards... that's the length of five football fields, just shy of half a mile.