It’s impossible not to be affected by what’s happening in this country right now. Within the last week, there have been several mass shootings in cities across the nation, a video was released of another unarmed child being killed at the hands of police, and more bills are being introduced to impede on trans rights, especially trans children. These are attestations that this country still has so long to go when it comes to protecting all of its citizens. This period in time is taking a toll on how we move through our day to day, challenging the negative impacts of the status quo, and more generally is just weighing us down in ways I think we’re all still unpacking.
How Many...
How many more think pieces can be written about my humanity as a black person in America? How many scholars must write fact-filled dissertations, writers & journalists craft essays, articles, papers, and stories about the history of violence in America? How many more times can we go to the streets with fire in our eyes and hope in our hearts when the system continues to fail us? How many more people’s names become hashtags while their families plea for justice that rarely comes? How many more times do we go through this cycle of terror, grief, frustration, sadness, and anguish?
Break Time Over: Still Fighting Hate
I have so many scattered thoughts on the tragedy that happened last week resulting in the death of 8 people in Atlanta and the most recent shooting that took the lives of 10 in Boulder. I’m still processing the way this country shamelessly coddles white men with guns. I’m still processing a lot of things (it seems like maybe it’s an endless endeavor), as I’m sure a lot of us are as we live through this raging pandemic and continue to be confronted by the destructiveness of white supremacy, the deadliness of gun violence, and the climbing Covid death toll.
Break Time!
I’ve been writing pretty frequently these past few months dredging up and explaining feelings of trauma, hopelessness, and trying to find the light at the end of this seemingly endless tunnel. I’m still searching, but for now I need to take a step back from updating and focus on things that will actually make me happy, plus work on more lucrative creative projects. I’ve also been using my blog as a crutch of sorts to avoid pitching/getting published. It’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time and need to actually focus on it. A break feels like a realistic step in the direction I want to go. I love writing. I love putting concepts onto paper in ways that I hope are enjoyable and understandable. It’s something I have always genuinely relished, but following politics closely these past several years, especially these last few months, has been extraordinarily draining.
Conservative Conundrums: Candace Owens & Ali Alexander
There was a distinct rise in the number of men of color who voted for Trump last election, and it is an upsetting reality that they felt Trump was representative of their wants and needs. I’ve talked about this with friends and family, read articles, and still cannot fully grasp how any person of color can vote so wholly against their interest and for a white supremacist or someone who’s admirable of white supremacist ideals. Maybe the term “not fully grasp” isn’t entirely accurate. I’m more astonished by the reasoning behind voting for him and, plainly, curious.
Conservatives that are outside of the typical straight white Christian male trope have been on the rise in the last several years. From personalities like Milo Yiannopolis to Diamond & Silk, it has been nothing short of a hellish mystery how these people were drawn to such a dark side of politics. It’s a mysetery that isn’t so mysterious if the main goal is money and/or attention, but it is an abysmal characterization that one could so completely discard morals for money. Then I think about corporations and how humanity is disregarded everyday in exchange for billions of dollars and a bit of my anger with them gets redirected to a society that often rewards profit over safety and scoffs at altruism. I start spiraling thinking of the many facets of greed that have gotten us to where we are today, but I digress.