Summary

The author argues that the Black community must critically assess and change behaviors that align with negative stereotypes to foster genuine progress and respect.

Abstract

The article titled "We, The Black Community, Must Stop Living Up to Our Own Stereotypes" discusses the issue of self-awareness within the Black community. The author contends that some Black individuals use the guise of "respectability politics" to justify inappropriate behavior, which aligns with harmful stereotypes. The author cites examples such as a Black woman twerking in front of a police car during the George Floyd protests and Black female artists over-sexualizing themselves for attention, arguing that these actions undermine the community's fight against stereotypes and perpetuate a victim mentality. The author calls for accountability, suggesting that while the world is not perfect and stereotypes exist, the community should strive to make decisions that do not reinforce these negative images. The article emphasizes the importance of self-awareness and making choices that benefit the collective rather than using inclusivity as a shield for poor individual decisions.

Opinions

The author believes that some Black individuals use the concept of respectability politics as an excuse for acting in ways that conform to negative stereotypes.
The author is critical of the lack of self-awareness in the Black community, particularly in relation to how certain behaviors are perceived and contribute to the perpetuation of stereotypes.
There is a concern that over-sexualization, especially by Black female artists, is detrimental to the community's image and is falsely justified as empowerment or liberation.
The author suggests that the Black community should hold individuals accountable for their actions to combat the victim mentality that is prevalent in society.
The article criticizes the misuse of Civil Rights ideology for personal gain rather than for the collective good of the Black community.
The author advocates for a balance between fighting for inclusivity and making individual decisions that do not negatively impact the broader community.

We, The Black Community, Must Stop Living Up to Our Own Stereotypes

We lack self-awareness and it shows.

“Stop using respectability politics!”

I thought this argument was used whenever black people try to assimilate into whiteness. Almost like wearing a tuxedo to avoid getting shot by police.

Well, that’s how this argument was used back in the day.

Now, it’s used as an excuse to act, how should I say it? Ghetto.

Gasp.

Let me explain.

During the George Floyd protests in 2020, I saw firsthand why other races don’t take black movements seriously.

I went on Twitter and saw a video of a black girl twerking and doing the splits on the ground — right in front of a cop car — at night.

I’m not saying this is how ALL black people think.

I was happy to see some black people condemning it in the comments, but some black people cried “respectability politics!” to combat us.

Here’s a hard pill to swallow…

We live up to our own stereotypes sometimes because we lack self-awareness.

Want another example?

Tons of black people online talk about how over-sexualized we are in the media, especially black women.

I follow black women singers on social media. Both of the up-and-coming ones I follow, named Normani and Chloe, both oversexualize themselves for attention.

I’m not saying that to sound judgemental.

I’ve followed these girls for YEARS. I’ve supported their music.

But there’s a difference between expressing your sexuality as a black woman and over-sexualizing yourself for clicks.

If you saw an inkling of the dumb over-sexual shit these women do, you’d get my drift.

If we’re viewed as over-sexual as a community, maybe we should…stop doing it?

But no.

We’d rather disguise it as “female empowerment” and “liberation” than call a spade a spade.

The victim mentality needs to stop.

One thing I hate about this overly-liberal, overly-sensitive society we live in today is that no one can hold themselves accountable for their actions.

We refuse to see the writing on the walls.

This over-sensitivity has created a HUGE lack of self-awareness within the black community.

It’s almost as if we ask to be treated like special snowflakes even though some shit we do is blatantly wrong. Once we get special treatment, we start to think we do nothing wrong.

This creates that “babe in the woods” lack of self-awareness that plagues the black community.

When are we going to fix this?

We must stop hiding under the guise of “inclusivity” and “empowerment” as excuses for our bad decisions.

It’s quite disrespectful of the Civil Rights leader of the past for us to use Civil Rights ideology for our personal gain — and not for the good of the black community.

You can’t perpetuate stereotypes about yourself and expect those stereotypes to disappear.

I’m not saying we all need to wear suits and dresses and have a “proper” tea party to show everyone how respectable we are.

But we don’t live in a perfect world.

There are horrible stereotypes used against us.

We should have the self-awareness to be more conscious of these stereotypes and make better decisions. We aren’t a monolith, but too bad, the world views us as one.

We should all fight for inclusivity.

But we shouldn’t use inclusivity as an excuse to make stupid individual decisions that impact the collective.

That’s all I’m saying.

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