562 Search results for "blackness"

The question of Blackness: How conversations about Bruno Mars and Cardi B miss the mark
by Briana L. Ureña-Ravelo There has been much conversation regarding Blackness as of late. What it is, when and how it matters, and who can and cannot claim it. At times the conversation has been very illuminating and compelling, but more and more it has become overwhelmingly caustic and mired in elitist, ahistorical, and colonial […]
Let’s talk about phenotype and global Blackness
by Siete Saudades Phenotype: the set of observable characteristics of an individual resulting from the interaction of its genotype with the environment. (How we look) Genotype: Genetic makeup of an organism. Race: a system of identity and power structures that categorise human beings based on ancestry and phenotype.
Passing a clean Dream Act would combat global anti-Blackness
by Biola Jeje Growing up in Brooklyn as a child of Nigerian immigrants, I can remember being in church and listening to other Nigerian immigrants deliver testimonies about which son, aunt, cousin, or sister had won the visa lottery and would finally be able to come join them in the United States. Collective sighs of […]
Heinous anti-blackness: Dozens of African girls found dead in Mediterranean Sea
Global personhood politics, which include white supremacy, gender-based violence and economic oppression of African-descended people, inflict grievous harm. Another painful reminder of this trifecta came via a New York Times column by Tariro Mzezewa, about nearly 40 African girls whose bodies were found in the Mediterranean Sea. Details about the girls are scant. They were […]
I live in a sanctuary city, and it’s a safe haven for white liberal anti-Blackness
by Christina Bolden The term “sanctuary city” came to be during the 1980s protests against federal policies that denied asylum to refugees from El Salvador and Guatemala. In light of Donald Trump’s federal policies, which will deny immigrants refuge and the ability to live here safely, sanctuary cities are once again at the forefront of the […]
The anti-Blackness of believing there’s no support for queerness in the hood
By Benji Hart The block on Chicago’s far north side where I stay is majority Black, poor and working class. It’s also gay as hell. The matriarch of the street is a Black cis queer woman in her 50s named Ce. She lives with her wife, a Black woman in her 30s, her daughter from […]
The whitewashing of ‘IT’ is proof that it’s past time to start centering Blackness in horror
In the years between Victor Halerpin’s White Zombie (1932) and Jordan Peele’s Get Out (2017), Blackness in the horror genre has largely been a myriad of hidden slavery narratives featuring gendered anti-Black violence and racist dehumanization. Excepting the stories that include Black characters as tokens or magical negroes who ensure the survival of white characters—usually […]
Why can’t we defend Blackness when a Black person does something wrong?
“Nothing exists in a vacuum” is a trite old aphorism used to explain how all actions have consequences. It is founded on a basic principle in physics that states that space without matter, by definition, contains nothing. The saying highlights the reality that any actions occurring outside of vacuums create ripple effects because matter connects […]
First ‘Black Panther’ trailer drops in epic blackness glory
LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers orchestrated the highest scoring first quarter in the history of the NBA Finals on Friday, but there’s a good chance a lot of fans missed a big chunk of it. Instead of watching the Cavs drop 49 points, a lot of us were stuck staring at our phones and […]
When white people enter a space, anti-Blackness always does too
On October 29th 2012, Glenda Moore’s two sons were killed during Hurricane Sandy, the youngest casualties during the storm. I say during rather than of the storm because the death of Moore’s children–Connor, 4 and Brendan, 2–was caused by another type of tempest, one that has gone on far, far longer and is far more […]
Solidarity can’t work without understanding that Blackness has a role in every struggle
The first 100 days of Donald Trump’s presidency have been marked by continuous attacks on the most vulnerable communities, just as promised. Those who have been resisting this administration have rightly responded to these attacks by attempting to shed light on every step taken toward such harmful efforts—from the blatantly bigoted “Muslim ban” and its […]
Rachel Dolezal, Farcical Blackness and ‘Eating the Other’
By: Imani J. Jackson One day I was minding my business, as an actual Black woman, when the Internet alerted me of a narrative that captivated America. Rachel Dolezal was a disgraced NAACP president whose whistleblower parents alerted the public of their daughter’s lived lie. Dolezal had deputized herself as a Black sister, taught Africana […]