"I Do See Color" weekly newsletter: Happy Thanksgiving!
Weekly newsletter 8: Combination of race- and culture-related posts from "We Need to Talk," "I Do See Color," "BlackTechLogy" and "Window Shopping"
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Each week, eight carefully selected posts will be chosen from my Medium “I Do See Color,” “We Need to Talk,” “BlackTechLogy” and “Window Shopping” publications that focus on culture, politics, health and race from a black (wo)man’s perspective.
NEW! 1. Guilt-tripping black people into liking Elon Musk won’t work ~ Yes, he’s South African. No, that doesn’t make him our hero.
If there was an instruction manual on Black People, there is a massive group of people who left the paperwork in the box. They absolutely don’t know how we operate.
In possibly the strangest guilt trip I’ve ever heard, a Twitter user (because where else?) left the following message to a black woman posting an Elon Musk Karen meme — “One of the richest people on the planet is African-American and you’re making fun of him? He was actually born in Africa too, unlike you.”
2. From childhood to adulthood: Simplest way to stop cultural appropriation ~ When imitation is more offensive than flattering
Out of countless costumes I wore for Halloween, one of my favorites had been my “Indian” costume. I had the moccasins, the feathers, the headdress and even clapped my hand over my mouth — straight up stereotypical. I was also a pre-teen who had zero experience with Native Americans. The likelihood of me sitting next to a Native American family in a restaurant or seeing them in any neighborhood mall around me was next to none, regardless of Chicago being the third largest city in the United States. In my mind, this costume was cool and “flattering.” My parents were just letting a kid be a kid. I can’t blame them for what they also viewed as a harmless costume at the time.
3. Stop doing these 5 things to your new black employees ~ I know you think it’s harmless, but it’s usually offensive
When I saw an email alert pop up from my boss, I read it with curious eyes. The subject was all about Victor*, a newspaper intern who she wanted me to mentor. I had no idea why I was chosen to be his mentor, especially considering I had only been working for this newspaper for maybe a year or so. But my boss thought I’d be “perfect” for him. I shrugged and responded, “Sure.”
4. ‘Stop acting light-skinned’ and other stupid colorism comments ~ Why black folks need to knock it off with skin color jokes
“Stop acting light-skinned.”
“She acts like that ’cause she’s light-skinned.”
“He has dark-skinned tendencies.”
“You better stay out the sun before you get too black.”
These kinds of comments make me cringe. It’s not quite ignorance because we know the weight it carries; it’s more like obliviousness or a defense mechanism. For African-Americans specifically, it is next to impossible to avoid acknowledging how colorism affects us.
5. Harriet Tubman’s legacy made me lose a job ~ My proudest moment of being dismissed as an editor
While fact-checking a history book on my “last” assigned day, I happened to notice some errors in the story of Harriet “Moses” Tubman and fixed them. In the entire time I was there, my edits were never questioned. They were quickly changed, and I got a few thumbs up from this boss. But one particular history book documented that Harriet Tubman only helped 13 slaves escape. I went through several credible publications such as PBS to confirm what I already knew. That number was more along the lines of 300 over the course of 19 trips. I fixed it.
When an editor came out to inquire about my edit, I pointed to the same sources that we’d regularly been using to fact-check other K-12 books.
“Well, that Tubman story is just a tall tale,” he said. “People made that up to make her look like some kind of hero.”
6. Stop using the term ‘racist’ unless you’re sure it is ~ Empty accusations on race can make you lose all credibility
I sat quietly in the condo association meeting, listening to the goals of our new management company, budget estimates and building repairs. I kept my promise to defend a neighbor whose rental car had been towed twice. Right after I asked about temporary car stickers, that’s when another owner said something that caught my attention: “Someone left a racist sign on our doors.”
7. Why are you rating black churches on Yelp? ~ Should churches receive travel reviews?
There are Yelp reviews for black churches — and that is so much to wrap my head around. I’m not opposed to consumer reviews at all. I have 122 on my own Yelp page, and I don’t hold back when I review companies on Medium. But what I heard on WBEZ’s 91.5 “This American Life*” just sounded cringeworthy. Tourists are apparently visiting African-American churches for the very first time and using selfie sticks inside. Backpackers are stepping out before the sermons start, and others apparently “gawk” at the scene on the main-level pews “like anthropologists.”
8. ‘Uncorked’: For black folks who love wine and Netflix ~ Can we get another round of ‘Uncorked’ comedy + drama films?
If I was a character in “Cheers,” Sam Malone would always know my order. I don’t care what other kind of fancy drink you give me or what beer brand you try to talk me into. I’ll always circle back to a whiskey sour or a Merlot — sometimes both. White wine is all right, but I’ve always had a thing for red. I didn’t know that Chardonnay was the “Jay Z” of white wine or Pinot Gris (or Pinot Grigio) was the “Kanye West” of white wine. I Drake-and-Drive often. But somehow in all my wine-drinking days, I have skipped over the “Drake” of white wine: Riesling. And it was a pleasant surprise to learn all of this while watching Netflix’s 2020 film “Uncorked.”
“Deuces” ~ “I Do See Color” newsletter’s bonus interviews:
1. The psychology of Barbie and Ken: PO's Dr. Fider consults with Mattel, Inc.
“Re-evaluating what Barbie homes should look like is one of the things that we spoke about,” says Dr. Carlene Fider, a Pacific Oaks faculty member, who recently consulted with Designmatters about diversifying the Barbie brand as it relates to the concept of home.
“One young lady asked how could she create a room where Barbie could be engaged in drawing art or doing architecture, which I thought was amazing. Frequently we don’t see Barbie portrayed in that light.
2. Loudspeaker Films: “Think of Calvin” documentary
Parents are natural protectors. When tested, their territorial instincts usually kick in. On May 17, 2013, Calvin Davis and Carlet Harris were put to the test when police followed their then-15-year-old son Montae riding his grandmother's adult tricycle around her neighborhood in Washington, D.C. One officer openly complained that the confrontation happened because of a lack of respect from the community. From the family’s perspective though, the situation that unfolded was undoubtedly a case of racial profiling. But without Carlet’s sister capturing the turmoil on her smartphone—footage that became the basis for the film “Think of Calvin”—this situation would have been an unresolved case of he said/she said.
Did you enjoy this post? You’re also welcome to check out my Substack columns “Black Girl In a Doggone World,” “Homegrown Tales,” “I Do See Color,” “One Black Woman’s Vote,” “Tickled,” “We Need To Talk” and “Window Shopping” too. Subscribe to this newsletter for the weekly posts every Wednesday.
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