Love Island USAstarts with hot singles coupling up. New people enter the villa and try to win over a taken person. Anyone who is single is at risk of being dumped from the island. The season ends with the public voting for their favorite couple who will win $100,000. The game splits the power by gender and reflects dating dynamics in society. Season 6 starts with men having more power, with one getting the most interest from the ladies.ButJaNa Craig took her power backonce she saw the first red flag. This is how the day trader flipped the script for Black women islanders with the first dumping.
There is a long unfortunate history of Black women being treated differently than other women onLove Island.Samira Mightybecame the first Black woman to be an original islander in the U.K. version of the show. She was stuck in a friendship couple withDr. Alex Georgeinstead of a romantic pairing like the other contestants. Fans at home threw support behind the doctor, but Samira didn’t get the same treatment.
Love Island
In a stunning villa, a group of attractive singles lives together as they seek love and connections. Contestants must pair up and stay coupled to survive elimination rounds. Along the way, they participate in engaging challenges and games that put their relationships to the test. New islanders are regularly introduced, causing shifts in alliances and romantic interests. Viewers play a crucial role by voting for their favorite couples, with the most popular pair ultimately winning a cash prize and the title of the strongest couple.
How Black Women Are Treated on Love Island
Amber Rose Gillalso didn’t have luck finding love in season 5. However, she made it to the end withGreg O’Sheaand won. We often see Black women not getting as much attention as other islanders.A study found Black women are less likely to marrythan Black men and women of other racial groups.That’s because they’re going up against sexism and anti-blackness.On the other hand, the Black men on these shows are seen as some of the most desirable in the cast. That’s not surprising given the long history of Black men being fetishized and sexualized in our society. These numbers lead to Black men having more power and options in the dating pool. This shows Black men exploring their options more than Black women in the Peacock show.
Black women are also typically matched with Black men on the first day through fan votes. There is an assumption that the Black man and woman would go well together based on their race,but that isn’t always the case.Some men have used this to their advantage. They have a type but will match with a Black woman who isn’t their type to stay in the villa.Ayo Odukoyawas in a love triangle withMimii NgulubeandUma Jammehinseason 11 of the U.K. show. He revealed Uma is more his type, but wanted to continue entertaining both women. He later matched with Mimii, so the strategy worked. Uma picked another man because she was frustrated with the love triangle. But now there will always be a question of how Ayo really feels about Mimii because he didn’t choose her over Uma.
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We have seen Black women’s time wasted on men who have little to no interest in them.Season 5 ofLove Island USAshowedKeenan AnunayandVickala “Kay Kay” Graycoupled up on the first day. However, Keenan got to know every bombshell who walked into the villa. The ladies watched a clip of Keenan under the covers withNajah Flearyon movie night.Kay Kay forgave him and when Keenan was dumped from the island, she decided to leave too.There is a long history of Black women islanders being loyal to Black meneven when they haven’t returned it. Season 6 could’ve gone the same way. Coye stands at 6'8" and was the most popular man on night one.Hannah Smith,Serena Page, and JaNa chose him for their couple. Coye wasn’t surprised that he had options based on his history. The ladies said they were attracted to his height. It looked like he would have a lot of power in the villa, but one person stopped that from happening.
JaNa Takes Her Power Back on Love Island USA
JaNa made it clear she was interested in Coye on the first night. However, she noticed he wasn’t talking to her much. JaNa pulled a new islander,Connor Newsum,to keep her options open. Coye noticed this but thought he had nothing to worry about. JaNa told him that she’s been chipping away at Coye’s shell. “I can give you more conversations,” he told her. “I shouldn’t have to ask you though,” she told him. Coye was overly confident about his place in villa. “I don’t feel like JaNa would do me like that,” he toldHakeem Whitein episode 3. It makes you wonder if how things played out with Black islanders in the past led to this assumption.
Later in the episode, the women picked the man they wanted to couple up with and JaNa surprised everyone. JaNa was the last woman with Connor and Coye left standing. “I would like to couple up with this boy because, other than the fact that he is obviously very handsome,I want to believe that he is open to working on our relationship,“she said. “This has been a very difficult position.” She chose Connor and everyone’s jaw dropped. The move was so surprising thatKordell Beckhamasked her for her reasoning after her announcement. She said they lacked communication.
“I’ll Always Put Myself First”
“I told myself I’ll always put myself first while I’m here,“she said after the decision. “So if I were to leave it’s like with no regrets.” In the past, Black women went for the man they wanted despite the red flags that they weren’t interested. They would then be at the mercy of a man who could pick someone else over her. It’s great that JaNa didn’t give up her power to Coye. She took things into her own hands by starting something with Connor, then dumped Coye, who would put her at risk of getting dumped. We know this because of his parting words after his elimination. “If I had done it again differently I would probably explore more options,” he told the camera.
Meanwhile, JaNa showed much more care about Coye. She apologized to him multiple times and made sure that there was no bad blood. “Just knowing that I’m not about to say the name that everyone was expecting it was like just the worst feeling,” she said in her interview. The day trader said he didn’t care to try.
Black women deserve intentional and attentive partners. The only way to find that is to keep men with the right energy in the villa. It’s understandable why Black women want to give Black men the benefit of the doubt, but if it could put their spot in danger, then they have to think about their future.There is also an expectation that Black women will match with Black men on these shows.However, JaNa gave herself a better chance by going against type as long as the man communicates and puts in the effort.
Love Island USASeason 6 is available to stream onPeacock. The season runs for six weeks, and new episodes will drop daily, except for Wednesdays at 9PM ET.Watch on Peacock
