Discussion for article #235175
The concept of race was created by racists.
I can’t stand it when white people accuse black people of being racist, especially when they are just celebrating themselves. Stupid white people … I am white, so I can say that 
Any given day on Tumblr features predictable imagery: flowers edited to remove saturation, Starbucks cups held by thin, white hands covered in knuckle rings and turquoise bracelets, Charles Bukowski poetry against the backdrop of pastel Pantone prints.
Really? I thought it was mostly used for porn. Though I’ve seen people complain that that’s too white as well.
“Of course you always see more white people on magazines, and on Tumblr you always see those artsy model-esque blogs, and I was tired of it,” he says. “My people are beautiful and gorgeous in every way [and] the world doesn’t see us as we see ourselves.”
The more things change, the more they stay the same. This is the way it was back in the day, and it’s still that way now. The fight continues to make the changes.
“Just to see thousands of people get behind this, [even telling] stories about how they don’t feel their beauty being black made me feel special,” Green says. “It made me get teary-eyed.”
There is no date of expiration on pride of being who you are. I hope this generation of young black people will take this as a part of a rallying cry and make the impact needed to eradicate this phenomena all together.
White users rushing to decry the “racism” or “reverse racism” of #BlackOutDay often refused to engage the creators’ analysis of power and representation, instead latching onto what they misread as being exclusionary. But creating space for oneself where it did not previously exist is not an act of exclusion; it’s a broadening of what “inclusion” means.
This is always the case simply because ‘they’ continually don’t get it. It is not about you. This world is not white, no matter if you’ve always tried to make it all your own. I understand it’s hard to grasp this, but facts are facts. The young brother is absolutely correct, it is “…creating space for oneself where it did not previously exist is not an act of exclusion, it’s a broadening of what “inclusion” means.”
I have to take issue with the author’s assessment about what black films have relevancy. Every time we try and pit one genre of black film against another, we weaken our argument. There is room for it all. I may be misinterpreting the author’s intent, but “12 Years A Slave”’ will always have meaning because the more America tries to belittle the history of slavery in this country, the easier she will find it mislead future generations about what it means to be an American. Faulty history makes for a false sense of pride. There was a need for ‘Selma’ because someone experienced “12 Years A Slave.”
But I commend all three of these young people for their efforts. This generation is fortunate to have SNS to advance their causes and issues. And yes, I’m one of those ‘Aunties’ who uses FB. But we seriously do not have a problem tackling the issue of race. At least not on my TL, with my FB family and friends. PEACE.
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Not a tumblr user but loved both the concept and the pictures.
It’s sad that so many people take offense at these things. I mean, what part of things like #BlackDayOut, #BlackGirlsRock, and #BlackLivesMatter is offensive? It is that a group that is usually marginalized and unseen attempt to be noticed? Or is it the “Black” part?
Sure, one could do #WhiteDayOut, #WhiteGirlsRock, and #WhiteLivesMatter, but being the prominent group in America, whiteness is always in the foreground. And the showcasing of whiteness – much like the outcome of police interacting with white people – is generally positive. White people are seen, their works highlighted, their bad deeds seen as the occasional random occurrence (I’m not saying that white people are bad – I’m just saying that there are no such phenomena in America as “White on White Crime” – it’s just referred to as “Crime”). Whiteness is always in the spotlight as being the embodiment of all that is good and popular. Whiteness is seen and heard every minute of the day, every day. So I shed no tears or make any apologies when Others want it to be known that they exist – and that they count, and are relevant.
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