A real motha for ya
Credit: X.
With Mother’s Day literally upon us, a recent incident revealed a symbolic clash of mothers. A 24-year-old Black woman, Jaylen R. Smith, was participating in protests against the genocide of Palestinian people on the campus of the University of Mississippi. Standing alone, outside the space railed off for the group, Smith was confronted by what looked like a lynch mob of hundreds of UM students harassing and verbally accosting her. Several could be seen and heard making “monkey” noises, a common racist antic. FYI, UM’s nickname is “Ole Miss,” a term created by enslaved Blacks used to describe “Ole Massa’s” wife, who our ancestors knew to be just as mean, vicious, cruel and heartless as her husband. Smith, symbolized all Black women, mothers of the universe, who have stood against all manner of indignities. Those Ole Miss students represented something too – the legacy of “Ole Miss.”
Another reason to support Black media
Word in Black member publishers, leading Black media outlets nationwide. Credit: Word In Black.
When an onslaught of tornados recently ravaged Oklahoma, the Weather Channel wasn’t allowed to use the word “tornado,” meaning they couldn’t name the thing that was actually happening. Similarly, when The Intercept reported that New York Times writers were instructed not to use the words “genocide” or “ethnic cleansing” to describe the genocide and ethnic cleansing going on in Gaza, they couldn’t name the thing that was actually happening, thus misshaping public perception of the “conflict.” Brother Toussaint Morrison recently spoke about this on Instagram, comparing this craziness to the purposefully deceptive move used by “mayo-stream media” and police departments across the country called DARVO (deflect and reverse victim order), i.e. when the police kill someone, “mayo-stream media” publicly label him or her a “suspect,” framing them as a criminal, when they really weren’t. This is just another reason to support Black media; the folk who will share news from our perspective.
Where’s Mr. Excitement
Blacks voting. Credit: AP/Jose Sanchez.
While a freshman at the University of Texas, attending my first Probate Show, I’ll never forget when the members of Phi Beta Sigma made their entrance. Each member of the line had their nickname on the back of their shirt, and the last brother’s back was emblazoned with the name “Mr. Excitement.” And it was quickly apparent that the nickname was purposely ironic. Because out of an auditorium full of young, hormonal Black sisters and brothers, excited out of our minds just to be in a space where it was just us, away from the lily-whiteness of campus, “Mr. Excitement” was far and away the most low-energy, chill, excitement-less person in the room. But dude’s zero energy didn’t stop us from being all in on the festivities and having a good time. That experience provides the perfect example of how we should approach the November 2024 election. No one’s excited about the Biden-Drumpf rematch. It’s mos def not Kendrick vs. Drake. But just like that 1983 Probate Show, there are countless other things to turn our excitement level all the way up. Living should excite Blackfolk. One party’s presidential candidate has promised “retribution and revenge” upon his enemies (hint: us). Protecting women’s access to healthcare and the right to say what happens to her body; that should excite us. The alternative is the Handmaid’s Tale. Breathing may not seem all that exciting, but just ask the person who’s cut off from oxygen how excited they are to get some. One presidential candidate plans to let mega-polluting industries pollute even more, with zero restrictions or guardrails. Common sense gun reform, voting rights protections, holding cops and wanna-be cops who beat and kill Blacks indiscriminately accountable – those things excite me. Being able to have a say in who my elected representatives are excites me way more than having some man-child, sex-offender, six-time bankrupt, insurrectionist-leading, whiney, farty, entitled racist as dictator running the entire show. We don’t need to be personally excited by the presidential candidates to know we must vote.
