Wednesday, January 6, I woke up celebrating that voters in Georgia snatched the coveted crown of leadership from Majority Leader (now Minority Leader) Mitch McConnell by voting Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff into the United States Senate. It was a glorious day as we also awaited Congress certifying […]
n America, the hardworking people are worth more than Mitch-I-Am-Rich-And-A-Bitch-McConnell, tossing us $600 after he fucked America. If Mitch is going to fuck us, KNOW we are worth much more for our services.
And Jada quickly felt the need to put on her White Savior Entanglement Cape and say, “I understand where you are coming from but let me just be clear. I never want to be the thing that was done to me by White women. I never want to be that.”
Girl please! Jada, on your WORST day, you can NEVER be “the thing” White women have been historically and presently to Black women. EVER. And inviting a privileged White woman on Red Table Talk isn’t going to make White women collectively see the light and change their ways.
Over the summer of 2020, America once again faced the harsh reality of racism as we dealt with the murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd. While there have sadly been many instances of Black people being murdered by “so-called” vigilantes and police officers, this time […]
But trust me, Paulette is all of us. We are over it. We are done! Zooms invite people into our homes, and home is our reality. Zoom is an illusion. It is a mirage. Our real lives will not always be pretty. Our attitudes will not always be poised. Our real lives don’t have the ability to add fancy backgrounds. Some days this is just it! We are asking people to be normal in a space in time that is abnormal. And we can only pretend for so long. So we must extend people some measure of grace. Paulette simply said what many of us are thinking when we are on a Zoom- PLEASE SHUT THE FUCK UP and let me drink my wine in peace!
As Black women we are challenging White women to have difficult conversations with their friends and family. That challenge doesn’t stop for Black women because a White or non-Black person is your friend. The foundation of friendship is truth and honesty.
It is because I am your friend, I am going to challenge you.
It is because I’m your friend, we are going to talk about race.
It is because I am your friend, we are going to address your anti-Blackness.
It is because I am your friend, I am going to let you deal with tough conversations, and I will not be there to rescue you.
And know, as your friend, I am not canceling you, I am challenging you.
I am sorry that this city will not care enough to see you. The sad truth is, as a Black woman, this city never saw you in all your beauty and splendor. This city will only care about you to the extent it can extract something from you, and once they have swallowed you whole, they will gladly spit you back out. This city will never see everything you contributed to this community nor understand how your death left holes that cannot be easily filled with plywood adorned with images of your face. I am sorry that this city never cared enough about Black women to get this moment right. I am sorry this city failed you.
We will not “good deeds” or “good person” our way out of racism. We must fight and resist our way out of racism. We must challenge systems. We must tear down in order to rebuild something new. The people that are in the streets demanding justice are demanding it for ALL Black people. We understand whether you are a Black man or a Black woman, you can be a victim of police brutality. We understand whether you have a GED or a Ph.D., you can be a victim of police brutality. We understand if you wear jeans that sag to your knees or a tailor-made three-piece suit, you can be a victim of police brutality. Do not let your proximity to Whiteness and good deeds fool you.
Finally, it dawned on me; it wasn’t that White women were not listening to Black women. I believe White women were indifferent to the suffering of Black women. Essentially, White women didn’t care.
Understand, that life as we know it doesn’t go back to normal this weekend. We don’t have the luxury of pretending we do not see what is happening in this nation. We don’t get to ignore everything that is going on around us. We don’t get to sip mint juleps served over crushed ice as the nation burns.
