Black Women Are Dope-Remixed
This blog entry is entitled: “Black Women Are Dope-Remixed” I’m giving it this title because the majority of this blog is actually a repost from a post I wrote on my Facebook page in December of 2019 regarding a statement of Black woman affirmation I made to the students in my African American Experience Course at the High School I teach at. But I decided to bring it back based on what I have witnessed over the past 24 hours after the naming of Senator Kamala Harris as the first Black woman to receive the Democratic Vice Presidential nomination.
While it became a moment of historic celebration across the nation it also, simultaneously, became a moment that saw the unleashing of a flurry of vitriol fueled in a Molotov cocktail of racism, misogynoir, sexism, colorism and deeply entrenched ethnocentrism...
“She’s not Black!”
”She’s not Black Enough!”
”How could she love Black people? She’s married to a white man.”
”She’s Jamaican and Indian. She’s not from here. ”
”She’s an import.”
These are the phrases, along with others too vile to mention here, that were used to describe and challenge her qualifications and worthiness of being nominated for the position. As much as we should be surprised & disappointed by these responses, by men and women alike, what they revealed is the depths of the gender, racial and cultural challenges that Black women have faced for centuries. Since the time of the global enslavement of the people of the African diaspora there has been a war waged on the image of Black women. A war waged to control the definition of what a Black woman is in beauty, intellect and power. A war where its victims continue to suffer in the form of misogynoir PTSD in judging who has the right to be called and seen as Black and who is not.
Senator Harris’ is just a microcosm of the challenges that Black women have faced. Black women have been culturally shamed for centuries. Professionally and academically they have bore the brunt of having their qualifications challenged while men of lesser stature have been given a pass. In fact many Black women have been challenged on their authenticity of their “Blackness” based on their family background, socio-economic status and who they have married. Point is Black women continue to be the victims of those who want to control the definition of their Blackness, often with the intention to belittle it’s cultural authenticity and render their image and accomplishments as inferior as opposed to messages of love and affirmation. If society is to ever progress this must end.
I write this to say simply to everyone. Our young Black girls are watching.
On December 9th, 2019 is when I originally wrote the post below. While it is a message of love and affirmation it is also one that reminds us that what so many Black women experience is not new. Yet is something that all of us have a responsibility to stand up and fight against.
“ Last week in my African American Experience course we started the discussion around “colorism” and how devastatingly pervasive the system of discrimination, ethnocentrism and oppression towards Black women, especially our dark skinned sisters, are. Not just in America but Globally.
During the class I showed three videos. Each of the videos were first person narratives of Black women. One from the United States, Brazil and London. In each video my students realized how deep the prejudices towards Black women went. While my students were shocked you could see the frustration on the faces of my young women. While we debriefed, they expressed their frustration regarding the lack of symbols that affirm the positive and amazing images that exist in the world for Black girls.
So circle up to yesterday. (December 2019)
I went to my favorite cafe, Black women owned, and saw a Sistah wearing a hoodie that said: “Black Men Are Dope.” Though simple in concept I could not help but realize the sudden feeling of affirmation I felt walking in to the cafe. It literally hit me just from seeing her wear the hoodie. So when I found out who the artist was I wanted to see if he had another version of it for me to rock.
And he did.
So today, I walked into my African American Experience class wearing this shirt: “Black Women are Dope.”
Though I appreciated the response from my students it wasn’t about me. It was about me affirming them. It was about the responsibility I have as their teacher and one of the few Black educators in the high school to set the tone of making sure my students, both the young women AND the young men, knew that I saw their value, greatness and beauty. In this case especially for the young Black women in the class.”
As I think about today, August 12th 2020, I am reminded of how far we still have to go to affirm our Black women.
So I’ll say it again.
Black Women Are Dope.