Why I'm not buying white companies' "solidarity" claims
In light of the recent events that have got mostly the whole world talking and people protesting and expressing their outrage among many other things, I have been silently watching. Not saying a word. Not using my posts to particularly demonstrate where I stand on these matters or to talk about my outrage. Why? Because I'm tired. I've been tired and I continue to be tired, as I am sure a lot of other people like myself are and continue to be. I also have a lot of unpopular opinions regarding a lot of the things I am seeing which I have been keeping mostly to myself, although I will express some of these in my post.
"Anti-racist" companies
Suddenly, after how many centuries and years of silence, big companies are coming forward to show their "solidarity". Why doesn't this move me? It should, right? It does NOT, and here are some reasons why:
I am starting to see a big change in where a lot of black people are putting their money, in where a lot of black people are choosing to invest, and in the mindset of a lot of young black people, and I feel that the predictions about how many of these companies are going to be affected by this in the coming future have led a lot of them to suddenly want to prove their "solidarity". But a lot of them have been silent for years and years, collecting black people's money and putting it in their pockets without saying a word or responding to issues which concern them, or that they have contributed to creating. It's all business, right? Indeed.
Plenty of brands/companies have had the opportunity to come forward and speak about matters that concern black people for years, and they have chosen not to, so why now? Why have black people been called sensitive and angry about almost every matter that they have brought to light over the years and others remained silent for the most part? Now you want to show your solidarity? It reminds me of the very popular experience that a lot of people have once they become successful. That's when people who expressed how you were never going to make it are suddenly intrigued by your life and want to be your friend, but nobody wanted to support you or even be associated with you when you were down in the dumps and had nothing. This is how I see a lot of the claims about "solidarity" these days. It might be coming from a good place in some cases, but I call bullshit on a lot of them.
I have, along with a lot of other black people, for years had to encounter racism on a daily basis, and those times I did express my feelings about these encounters, I was told to endure, to tolerate, that not all non-black people are like that. Well, the people who aren't sure haven't been speaking up.
Where was your solidarity back when it was needed?
Where were these so-called allies when news about Africans, among them heavily pregnant women and barely 2-month-old babies, being thrown out on the streets in Guangzhou, China was being reported? Where were these allies when black people were being senselessly murdered by police or even citizens in Western countries? The young man who got his life taken in Greece by an angry mob of white boys a few years ago or Breonna Taylor in America who was shot by police in her own home only weeks ago? IN HER OWN HOME! Do I need more examples? Allow me to continue.
Where were the voices when brands like Prada unapologetically put up and sold 'blackfaced' merchandise, or when Amazon decided it was okay to sell Agatha Christie's 'Ten little N******"? Or when they were supposedly hacked and had pages for AirPods with racist imagery?
Where have these voices been in the face of senseless murders on the African continent for our resources? Coltan from Congo that is used so your phones, laptops, and other devices can function? Blood Diamonds from Sierra Leone? The contamination of Niger Delta, Nigeria from oil spillage by large white corporations such as Shell?
So tell me, why should I as a black person trust that any of these expressions of "solidarity" are actually genuine? I don't and I won't. What I will do, however, is continue to have faith in the fact that black people will one day see their own worth and stop pining for inclusion from non-black people, that one day we will again (just like in the days of BLACK WALLSTREET - Google that sh***) be a powerhouse for plenty of black businesses to grow and thrive. That we will be competitors instead of employees at white firms, that we will see each other as ONE instead of a divided people who neither trust nor love each other.
Together we are stronger
I believe most of us have developed our ability to judge based on character, and many of us already know when something smells like or even looks remotely like bullshit. I know the dream about a united society is one that many carry, but as black people, we do have bigger fish to fry. We cannot expect to be loved or respected by communities outside of our own if we do not love and respect one another. There's a saying often used, "Charity begins at home", and I could not agree more. Why don't you start fixing your own, building your own, coming together and creating your own before seeking acceptance from other places? In fact, when you do build your own and work on your own, you will never feel the need to be accepted by others. You simply would not have the time or patience to wait for that to happen. You would be thriving in your area.
Some people don't understand why I have so much love and hope for black people. Some people will never understand why I am so comfortable in my blackness and proud of my heritage, but you try to spend years in silence thinking you are wrong for merely existing and tell me that once you see that that's not true, that your mindset would not change.
I am done waiting for people to speak for me. I have been done waiting for people to speak for me. I speak for myself. I have had myself for years and through my independence and experience, I have learned to speak for myself, to fight for myself, to fend for myself, and I feel it's high time that black people as a collective do too. Together we are stronger!
"Anti-racist" companies
Suddenly, after how many centuries and years of silence, big companies are coming forward to show their "solidarity". Why doesn't this move me? It should, right? It does NOT, and here are some reasons why:
I am starting to see a big change in where a lot of black people are putting their money, in where a lot of black people are choosing to invest, and in the mindset of a lot of young black people, and I feel that the predictions about how many of these companies are going to be affected by this in the coming future have led a lot of them to suddenly want to prove their "solidarity". But a lot of them have been silent for years and years, collecting black people's money and putting it in their pockets without saying a word or responding to issues which concern them, or that they have contributed to creating. It's all business, right? Indeed.
Plenty of brands/companies have had the opportunity to come forward and speak about matters that concern black people for years, and they have chosen not to, so why now? Why have black people been called sensitive and angry about almost every matter that they have brought to light over the years and others remained silent for the most part? Now you want to show your solidarity? It reminds me of the very popular experience that a lot of people have once they become successful. That's when people who expressed how you were never going to make it are suddenly intrigued by your life and want to be your friend, but nobody wanted to support you or even be associated with you when you were down in the dumps and had nothing. This is how I see a lot of the claims about "solidarity" these days. It might be coming from a good place in some cases, but I call bullshit on a lot of them.
I have, along with a lot of other black people, for years had to encounter racism on a daily basis, and those times I did express my feelings about these encounters, I was told to endure, to tolerate, that not all non-black people are like that. Well, the people who aren't sure haven't been speaking up.
Where was your solidarity back when it was needed?
Where were these so-called allies when news about Africans, among them heavily pregnant women and barely 2-month-old babies, being thrown out on the streets in Guangzhou, China was being reported? Where were these allies when black people were being senselessly murdered by police or even citizens in Western countries? The young man who got his life taken in Greece by an angry mob of white boys a few years ago or Breonna Taylor in America who was shot by police in her own home only weeks ago? IN HER OWN HOME! Do I need more examples? Allow me to continue.
Where were the voices when brands like Prada unapologetically put up and sold 'blackfaced' merchandise, or when Amazon decided it was okay to sell Agatha Christie's 'Ten little N******"? Or when they were supposedly hacked and had pages for AirPods with racist imagery?
Where have these voices been in the face of senseless murders on the African continent for our resources? Coltan from Congo that is used so your phones, laptops, and other devices can function? Blood Diamonds from Sierra Leone? The contamination of Niger Delta, Nigeria from oil spillage by large white corporations such as Shell?
So tell me, why should I as a black person trust that any of these expressions of "solidarity" are actually genuine? I don't and I won't. What I will do, however, is continue to have faith in the fact that black people will one day see their own worth and stop pining for inclusion from non-black people, that one day we will again (just like in the days of BLACK WALLSTREET - Google that sh***) be a powerhouse for plenty of black businesses to grow and thrive. That we will be competitors instead of employees at white firms, that we will see each other as ONE instead of a divided people who neither trust nor love each other.
Together we are stronger
I believe most of us have developed our ability to judge based on character, and many of us already know when something smells like or even looks remotely like bullshit. I know the dream about a united society is one that many carry, but as black people, we do have bigger fish to fry. We cannot expect to be loved or respected by communities outside of our own if we do not love and respect one another. There's a saying often used, "Charity begins at home", and I could not agree more. Why don't you start fixing your own, building your own, coming together and creating your own before seeking acceptance from other places? In fact, when you do build your own and work on your own, you will never feel the need to be accepted by others. You simply would not have the time or patience to wait for that to happen. You would be thriving in your area.
Some people don't understand why I have so much love and hope for black people. Some people will never understand why I am so comfortable in my blackness and proud of my heritage, but you try to spend years in silence thinking you are wrong for merely existing and tell me that once you see that that's not true, that your mindset would not change.
I am done waiting for people to speak for me. I have been done waiting for people to speak for me. I speak for myself. I have had myself for years and through my independence and experience, I have learned to speak for myself, to fight for myself, to fend for myself, and I feel it's high time that black people as a collective do too. Together we are stronger!
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