Everyone Gets To Profit Off Black Women...Except Black Women
Every time I think the internet can’t get any weirder, it does. Thanks to Wi-Fi, blogs, dating apps, message boards, and a slew of other sites, the internet has given the masses a safe space to reinvent themselves or remain anonymous. While this is a blessing for those who choose to browse the inter-webs in peace, it has a money grabbing, clout chasing, wanna be famous circus for others. The internet allows people to create an entire personality and build a platform based on a lie. You know who gets copied the most for comedy, culture, beauty, and money? If you guessed black women, you guessed correctly. Let me tell you why…..
Last week while cruising the twitter streets, I saw a story developing about an anonymous twitter celebrity who was planning to reveal themselves via a Paper Magazine article. Supposedly, this person had an anonymous Twitter account (although it was widely understood that it was a black woman) who was known for their great tweets and being a strong supporter of women’s rights. This person even gave advice about periods, therapy, and endometriosis all under the guise of being a black woman. By the time I caught on to the drama, this individual had revealed himself to be a black man. A black man who felt that he couldn’t build a platform by being himself and decided that masquerading as a black woman was easier. I mean, he had a celebrity support and everything.
After the truth came out and black women ripped him to shreds, you know he had the nerve to ask all of his followers to follow him on his other social media platforms so people could finally see the vision. What vision? Of being a black woman??? The story continued to get weird and if you want to read in it’s entirety, you can find it here. It’s also not lost on me that people, both women and men, continue to profit of black women and our personalities, but make it impossible for us to reach any sort of success by being ourselves.
In the past 5-10 years, the number of black men putting on wigs and acting like black women for laughs has increased. Ever since Tyler Perry put on that grey wig and created his Madea personality, the market has been flooded. He said himself that Madea is based off his aunts and grandmother that helped raised him. Yet, Tiffany Haddish is labeled as loud and ghetto for that exact same things Madea gets praise for. Make it make sense!
Not only do black men do it, other races do it as well. Just a few months ago, there was a movie called “Loqueesha” that came out and it was a about a white radio DJ pretending to be a black women on air in order to boost his ratings. If the name wasn’t disrespectful enough, you’re telling the world that white people are bland mayo and you need black women for the spice. Newsflash, we are good at other things besides making people laugh and they need to start giving us credit.
It’s really tiring to see the number of black female creatives who have to struggle and fight their way into certain industries while others make money off our mannerisms, our creativity, and our overall culture. It’s not just in comedy either. You can see it in the beauty industry, Hollywood, comedy, and fashion. They are always taking our culture, but never giving us the credit. It’s proof to us as black women that they need us in everything they do and they need to start paying us for it. We create the tempo, we are the style, and we set the tone. Without us, you would be stuck on Youtube with dry makeup tutorials and empty jokes on Instagram. Don’t believe me? Try meeting one of those Instagram comedians without the gimmick. Tuh.
