Long Island residents gathered at E.B. Elliot's on Freeport's Nautical Mile on June 14 to rally against the new Bravo reality show, "Princesses: Long Island," which they feel is an inaccurate portrayal of LI residents, according to the Long Island Press.
Much like New Jersey Governor Chris Christie and many citizens of the state did following the success and infamy of MTV's "Jersey Shore," Long Islanders claimed to be offended by the stereotypes presented in the new reality show at a recent protest, including Jewish residents who found the show's depiction of Long Island Jewish women distasteful.
"Princesses: Long Island" features a cast of six college-educated women who live at home with their parents in various Long Island communities, and follows their lives as they look for love and navigate the LI social scene.
One cast member, Ashlee White, was recently under fire for making a comment calling the city of Freeport "ghetto." White later apologized for the insensitive remark, but a local rap group, Nice and Ill, wrote a song about the show afterwards, calling attention to her indiscretion during the rally. They performed their song "Bravo" and received almost 40,000 his on Youtube just two days after the event.
"People outside of New York who watch the show are going to think, 'Ew that's how all Long Islanders are,'" said Chris Mills of Nice and Ill to the Press. "No, this is false. This isn't Long Island."
The event was organized through a Facebook group, formed by Kimberly Creed Llompart, a Freeport resident. "I hope that all this makes Bravo realize that what they are representing is not reality," she said to the Press. "I was happy to see people in the community stand up for what is right." She and others hope the show will not be renewed for a second season.
"After Sandy, everyone in the community was looking out for one another," said Anita Scott, a Freeport resident who lost everything after Hurricane Sandy. "That's Freeport. It's not a ghetto.
"We're hurt that someone would depict Freeport in that way. [The show is] insulting all of us."
