Protecting Black Women: Addressing Colorism Issues And Abuse
Colorism and abuse is alive and well in the Black community and it’s necessary for these issues to be addressed! We discuss it here!
By: Kwana Adams
Sometimes the only people black women have to take care of them are other black women. The hashtag #sayhername was born from black women because of black women being neglected, and put to the side when it comes to social issues such as police brutality, domestic violence and anti-black acts of violence.
The hashtag was a movement created to shed a light on the fact that black women’s issues are often sidelined. Some notable names from this hashtag are Sandra Bland, Rekia Boyd, and Breonna Taylor. However, there are countless stories that are not being told or are not given enough recognition and care as other stories.
A rapper by the name of Talib Kweli has been harassing a black woman online and has not stopped for almost a year. Even being banned from Twitter did not stop that man from his continued harassment which he simply continued on Instagram. He has also talked about her on shows and in interviews continuing to make himself the victim.
The woman he has been harassing goes by @Moneyymaya on Twitter and a harmless tweet caused almost a whole year of targeted harassment from a black man who took the tweet personally. Talib was only one of many other black rappers named but was the only one to take it to this extreme. The tweet was a brief mention of colorism and how black rappers perpetuate and uphold it in the black community. It was a very valid opinion and something that could have possibly been addressed in a more respectable matter had Talib not instead decided to target Maya relentlessly.
Colorism is alive and well in our community and it does deserve a spotlight. However, the potential conversation was overshadowed by a man who got his feelings hurt. As a community, we should be addressing this a lot more and holding black men accountable for the abuse they inflict onto black women.
Followers and supporters of Talib Kweli have also been harassing Maya, threatening her family, sending threats of rape and death, and even doxxing her family members. Kweli and his supporters have even gone as far as to harass people who have spoken up in support of Maya. He took to Instagram that rapper Noname compared him to Tory Lanez, a rapper who allegedly shot another black woman, Megan Thee Stallion in both feet.
Maya has endured threats to not only her livelihood but her family’s the same way Megan has become a topic of ridicule and speculation on social media. Noname has also been slandered in the process of trying to protect black women. None of these women deserve what they’re going through. They deserve to be protected and they deserve to be heard.
Since Maya was told by lawyers that there’s not much of anything that can be done of the harassment, she’s been documeting the whole ordeal in Twitter threads amd letting everyone know tha if something happens to her, it’s because of this incident and the poor way it’s been handled. Other black women have been targets as well for sticking up for her. My question is, why is it that the majority of people coming to her defense are black women? Will everyone hear us only when it’s too late, and even then, will anyone protect us? How has this man been able to get away with openly harassing women for almost a year nonstop?
Please follow this story for your own research because there are still so many things that I did not mention in this article. Black women don’t always have to be “strong” and it’s that that kind of responsibility put on us that makes it hard for us to get justice in situations such as this. Talib Kweli, Tory Lanez, and other harmful men need to be stopped. They need to be held accountable for the harm they cause black women and it shouldn’t only be up to black women to do it. Say our names and tell our stories.
YOU MAY ALSO BE INTERESTED IN:
SHARE TO SOCIAL MEDIA
Black Lives Matter Is Raising Money But Where Is It Going?
Since 2013, “Black Lives Matter” has risen in popularity and has raised millions of dollars, but there has been a lot of criticism surrounding the BLM Network and where the money they are earning is going. We discuss it here!
By: Kwana Adams
Since its conception in 2013, Black Lives Matter has steadily risen to prominence. With the publicity, they’ve received a lot of money, and with that money came a lot of criticism. In 2020, the BLM Network foundation raised $90 million.
According to their impact report, they donated a quarter of it to BLM chapters and local organizations. There has been a lot of criticism surrounding the BLM Network and where the money they are earning is going. Samaria Rice, the mother of Tamir Rice, has accused BLM and activists of exploiting and profiting off her son’s death and other black people who were victims of police brutality.
She is joined by Lisa Simpson, Richard Risher’s mother, in slamming activists allegedly profiting off black death but not donating to the families affected. They are calling for the organization and other activists to step down and stop using their families’ names to gain recognition. They are also demanding some of the money that BLM has earned, claiming they never saw a penny of it.
Michael Brown Sr, whose son Michael Brown was shot by a police officer in 2014, is demanding $20 million of what BLM made. He received $500 from the BLM Network since 2014. Michael Brown’s case was a high-profile case in Ferguson, Missouri, after courts decided not to indict the police officer who shot him. The shooting itself caused months of protest in Ferguson,, and it was news all over the country.
Although Black Lives Matter was a response to what happened to Trayvon Martin, it was the Ferguson case that really brought it into the spotlight further. Michael Brown was only 18, and he was allegedly shot with his hands up, implying that he was surrendering while the officer was still shooting. This is still something that no one knows for sure is true, but the “Hands up, don’t shoot” slogan was birthed from it.
The biggest thing that upset me about this case and many others like it was that Michael Brown was unarmed, despite whether he actually had his hands up or not. The world began widely questioning why the police keep shooting unarmed black men with no repercussions.
Michael Brown Sr and other Ferguson activists believe that BLM should donate some of the funding they received to him and the community. They hope to use the money for their “Chosen for Change” foundation, the Mike Brown community center, grants for Ferguson protests and activists, and more, including an annual commemoration of Mike Brown Jr’s death. This is the first year that the network has been open about their finances and Patrisse Cullors, BLM co-founder, says they plan to reinvest the money into their organization and chapters.
There has been a lot of opinions from both sides on what BLM should do with the money. Some people believe they should be morally obligated to give more money to the families of the victims they gain prominence from. Others believe that they should be allowed to spend the money how they see fit. The whole platform and main purpose of Black Lives Matter is to “eradicate white supremacy, and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on black communities by the state and vigilantes.” No one can deny the work they have done in spreading awareness and organizing protests to demand change. We also can’t deny that the only reason they are able to do this work is because of the families who have lost their loved ones due to a police killing that went unpunished.
They keep their names amplified so that no one forgets them. However, when it comes to assisting these families, I believe they can do better. I personally think they should leave some space in their budget to give to those asking. A lot of these families are tirelessly working in their own communities trying to gain justice and spark change. They are not just simply asking for handouts. Should the BLM Network give some of their money to the families who ask for it or should it be their choice to give and decide the amount they want to give?