Do we always have to root for the Black team?

After reading Michelle's post on America's Next Top Model, it got me to thinking about picking our favorite person or team to win these reality series competitions. I realize it's just a small slice of life and we take race into consideration for many more important things (like our political choices - but that's a whole other discussion!)

Michelle raised a good point that the black model in this cycle probably won't win and, more than likely, it's because a similar looking black model won just last cycle. So it's not her "turn."
But could it be that she's just not that great, race notwithstanding? I've watched this reality series from almost day one, and all the episodes of this cycle, and Eugena just doesn't do it for me. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a huge fan of Caridee's and even less of one for Melrose, but IMO, they have way more personality than Eugena. I can't remember anything she's done that's really made her stand out. My personal choice would have been Anchal, who was gorgeous but, unfortunately, her insecurities allowed the other models to run her off. So, am I a traitor for not rooting for the black model?

And, for that matter, what about the competition going on in the Amazing Race? For the first time in ten seasons of this series, an all female team (the Bama Girls) has made it to the final three. And they're both black! Unfortunately, they aren't really my choice to ultimately win the million bucks. I'll probably root for them because the other two choices are so unpalatable - the crack-head models or the bickering dating couple who yell and scream at each other. But I don't think the Bamas really earned their place in the final three and I'd rather have seen the Cho Brothers take it. The Bamas have never come in first on any leg of the race, and the two times they came in second, it was because another team made a serious mistake. And if it hadn't been for the alliance between them, the Coalminers and the Cho Brothers, they would have been gone long ago. But I always found myself being so disappointed when the episode ended with them just barely bringing up the rear as if they carried the weight of the entire black race on their shoulders. Sigh.

Which brings me to my reaction to the first eliminations on these two shows and Survivor. In ANTM, the first model to go this season was Christian, who was black. The one thing we can be mad about is that this show is very subjective in nature since you have a panel that judges who's got the potential to be a model and, let's face it, race is a big factor. But what about the shows where it's mostly based on skill, knowledge and cunning? The first team to be eliminated on Amazing Race was Bilal and Sa'eed, the black Muslim team. They got to the pitstop last. On Survivor, they did something new this season - they made the initial tribe divisions along racial lines; a black tribe, a white tribe, an Asian tribe and a Hispanic tribe. Guess which tribe lost first and had to vote a member out? But it was because they lost the physical challenge, not because someone possibly targeted them because of race. It's down to 7 people and only one is black, Sundra. And if she doesn't win it's probably because the alliances that others formed preceded her joining them. I'm actually rooting for Yul, the diplomat!