On April 7, 2013, the fourth episode of Bravo?s hit reality show Married to Medicine bowed in with 2.66 million viewers. Created by castmember Mariah Huq and the production company Purveyors of Pop, Married to Medicine allows its viewers into the lives of two prominent black female doctors and four wives of doctors, all women living in Atlanta.

[READ: Battling Buckhead Ballers! Married to Medicine Ep. 4 Recap (VIDEO)]

Before the show aired, an online petition from medical students at Howard University surfaced with a statement that Married to Medicine exploits educated, professional black women, associates them with ?materialism? and unprofessionalism,? and makes obtaining residencies harder for black women. Beyond this petition lies a more distinct truth: women, especially black women, are not afforded the opportunity to engage in aggressive behavior without real consequences, consequences that activate racial and gendered stereotypes.

[READ: Meet the Cast of Married to Medicine (PHOTOS)]

All of the women on Married to Medicine are college educated women, which distinguishes this cast from other reality show franchises with predominately black cast members, including Real Housewives of Atlanta, Basketball Wives Miami, and Love and Hip Hop. Continue Reading…