Everything your mother didn't have time to tell you because she was too busy struggling!
Written by Nicole
Election season is upon us. I have received multiple text messages from both parties seeking my vote. Can you imagine, little old me?! Every other ad is an election ad, and social media has become more unusable than normal. But an interesting phenomenon is in evolution as we speak, which is not the first time it has happened this year.
What phenomenon is that, you ask? Why, the ever-present hypocrisy and double standards that black folks uphold, of course!
We saw this earlier this year with Megan thee Stallion, and I compared her treatment this year to Kanye, another rapper. And now, we have it again, with Curtis, Clifford, Kanye, Candace, Chrisette and Cube. It is a curious case of conservative cancellation. And some awesome alliteration, might I add.
Donald Trump is quite a polarizing figure. And even though black folks are not a monolith, rest assured, if you publicly support him, or any other conservative candidate, you are, without a doubt a tap-dancing coon traitor!
Except, wait a minute, that’s not how it goes at all!
Now, before I get started, this post is not endorsing any candidate. If you are voting red or blue, that’s up to you. I’ll never down a black woman for acting, or voting, in her best interests. Rather, this post will have a little look at the hypocrisy that has unfolded as a result of the impending election.
Gorilla emoji come to life, 50 Cent, voiced his support for Trump after reviewing Biden’s tax plan. The rapper said he didn’t want to become 20 Cent with a Biden presidency. This is particularly funny, given that he went from being amongst the richest rappers, to filing bankruptcy in a matter of years. I don’t think that the president(s) at the time of his financial issues had much to do with it then, but hey. Whatever.
50 even said “I don’t care Trump doesn’t like black people 62% are you out of ya fucking mind.”
Do I have a problem with his support of The Donald? Not at all. That’s not what I’m getting at. Stay with me though.
Ice Cube has somehow been nominated as The Black Delegation Representative, and worked with the Trump campaign about the “Contract With Black America”. Ice Cube said that he was contacted by both candidates’ campaigns. First of all, a rapper who had massively contributed to the widespread proliferation of gangsta rap, and is therefore responsible for the toxicity that resulted, should not be consulted on anything. Is this that Black Excellence I keep hearing about? The campaign of the leader of the free world going over this black contract with a rapper, rather than scholars, REAL black thinkers, is very concerning to me. With lyrics like:
“Straight outta Compton, crazy motherfucker named Ice Cube
From the gang called Niggaz Wit Attitudes
When I’m called off, I got a sawed off
Squeeze the trigger, and bodies are hauled off
You too, boy, if ya fuck with me” – Straight Outta Compton
Is this really what represents the black community? Really??? Am I the only one who thinks this is highly insulting?
Once again, this has nothing to do with Ice Cube’s support of the Trump campaign. I expect black men to do things that benefit them, and to hell with everybody else – a lesson black women could learn from them. But, just hang on a bit. I’m setting the scene.
This now leads us to yet another puerile rapper, who I last heard about when he made the news for violating his daughter with ridiculous hymen checks, also stepped into the fray. What makes this really interesting is that just this past June, TI pulled no punches insulting Candace for her conservative views.
Aaaaand fast-forward to this past Monday, when TI backed Ice Cube’s decision to work with the Trump campaign. He said we have to give Ice Cube the benefit of his reputation, or some similar thesaurus regurgitation pseudo-intellectual babble.
Again, TI backed Ice Cube for supporting the Trump campaign.
A mere 130 days have passed between the article of TI insulting Candace for supporting Trump (June 11), and Monday’s article of TI defending Ice Cube for working with Trump (October 19). And here we are.
The fact that people see these males as some kind of prominent leader or authority figure is a big part of the reason why the black community is doomed to fail, regardless of who is in office. Expeditiously.
And that brings us here.
Just under four years ago, Chrisette Michelle sang at Donald Trump’s inauguration. And that little performance not only decimated her career, but even caused her to have a miscarriage due to the stress. The only time you really hear about her is in relation to that event. And four years on, she is still cancelled. Meanwhile, Kanye can support him openly and boldly, and face not even a fraction of the criticism. He even said slavery was a choice. He even rocked his MAGA hat with the best of them.
“Wow” said Kanye. Me too. Wow.
Ice Cube can work alongside his campaign, and the same people who eviscerated Chrisette for singing at the inauguration are nowhere to be found to criticize him.
Candace has caught much heat for being a vocal Trump supporter. Her Black Card, that useless piece of pedestrian paraphernalia, has been revoked more times than you can say MAGA. And yet, I would bet you any amount of money that the same black men who were calling Candace out her name, are going to be quiet as quiet can be, or even supportive, when their fellow black men do the very same thing. Crazy, huh?
I don’t have to agree with Candace Owens on every single thing. In fact, I’m tired of making that disclaimer. No one agrees 100% with anyone, and somehow when it comes to black women expressing any kind of viewpoint that bucks the “norm”, we feel obligated to hem and haw about how we don’t aGrEe with her on EvErYtHiNg. There’s that hypocrisy again. Only when a black woman makes a controversial claim, are other black women who may have agreed with her in the past, made to account for her every contentious viewpoint.
Here’s another example. Earlier this year, people were chomping at the bit to side with Snoop when he called Gayle King a funky dog-headed bitch. Snoop, who, like other rappers on the list was a literal pimp, or glorified pimping. There was no distinction made with his previous comments or history – people just sided with him over Gayle and that was that. Snoop did not have to account for his previous statements or the harm his entire body of work has caused to the community. But you better believe he wouldn’t have called Martha Stewart any kind of animal, now would he?
So you know what? I like Candace Owens and I think more black women should use her as a case study. All the name calling and accusations of being a plant or an agent, merely for thinking a little differently, is not affecting her in the slightest. In a few months she will be welcoming her first born, and her bag, and her position, to use KsC’s parlance, is secured. Far more secured than any of her detractors, mind you.
You might find yourself asking, “How come famous black men can be openly conservative, but black women can’t?” Or, similarly, “Why has Chrisette Michele been unable to have the flourishing career she deserves four years after singing at Trump’s inauguration?” Or even “how come this hypocrisy isn’t being pointed out a whole lot online?”
Well, the answer, while complicated, is also quite simple.
We are seen as beasts of burden that black men can use as simultaneous mules and fuck-toys. Your individual dads and brothers might be different, but here’s a fun fact, if they sit back and say/do nothing about the idiots running rampant in the community, they are not as good as you claim. They might be good to you (and even then, most of the dads the community praises leave much to be desired), but you are biased by virtue of being related to them. It’s just that simple.
Excuse after excuse will be made for black men, who can literally say “I don’t care Trump doesn’t like black people” – 50 is just looking out for himself, right? Kanye’s support for Trump is born out of mental illness, just pray for him, okay? Ice Cube is not supporting anybody, it’s just business, right?
But Candace, Chrisette, and any other black woman who strays from the monolithic path in any topic, doing the same thing that black men do, are subject to harsh criticism, castigation, and cancellation. If you are not deemed as “attractive” – darker skin, kinkier hair, black features, then it’ll be even worse for you. The black community is full of hypocrites. And worse yet, it’ll be your fellow black women leading the charge for cancellation.
The best thing you can do is build a life for yourself that does not change depending on who is president. Painful as it is, recognize that the community is rife with hypocrites, and as a black woman, you will frequently be on the receiving end of that hypocrisy, especially if you have values or thoughts that are not deemed “black enough”. Distance yourself for the dysfunction we uphold by cutting off friends, and even family members, who will relegate you to last place in favor of the community’s precious sons. And as always, move in stealth. A good way to escape getting cancelled is to keep your thoughts to yourself, and act in our best interests, even at the cost of being cast out from the “community”. A community that doesn’t even like us.
Disclaimer: This blog was written by me, Nicole, and my ideas are not necessarily reflective of Christelyn Karazin or other writers on this platform.
“Author of Swirling. Advocate for black women finding love across color lines. Creator of The Pink Pill.”
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