POC/ J. Cole and Lin Manuel

Being a woman of color and a black woman is not synonymous.
In life, we all go through shit, and the shit doesn't necessarily have to be measured and judged through the oppression Olympics....but to be clear, being a woman of color and being Black is not always the same.

If women of color dip into the oppression, the opportunity gaps, the standards of desirability, the form of sexism only felt by women of color, and the silencing; then they too must commit to uplifting Black women.

But that is not always, or usually the case. The solidarity that is only showcased when convenient and beneficial is problematic.

Being bi-racial certainly has its own shit but I know that not being perceived as "Black" to white folks and even Asian folks has its own undeniable privilege. And the first step is to acknowledge that. While it's lovely to think of working together, we first need to acknowledge our stories and where we come from.

Asian women do a lot of harm to black women, through colorism, through negative judgements, through standards of desirability through respectability politics, through body politics.

Light-skin women of color do a lot of harm to black women as well.

So I try to be cognizant when using those terms
because I am unapologetically both,
and being a woman of color in this country is not easy in itself,
but I also know that they way I present to the world and the way I walk through the world should not afford me to co-opt the struggle that some black women endure.

Food for thought for some bi-racial women and non-black women of color.

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Now, J. Cole lyrics because everyone needs some....

"I’m lovin’ your light, vulnerable
Lettin’ your guard down, it’s honorable
‘Specially when the past ain’t been that friendly to you
But there’s magic in that
You’re the flower that I gotta protect
And keep alive in the winter time
Hey, don’t you die yet
You been way more than a friend of mine
We’re more like fam
I raised you, you raised me, let’s turn this whole life ’round
You can confide in me
I can take the weight up off your shoulder blades
And try to store the pain inside of me
And why the world do you like that
Like they don’t know you God-sent
But me, I view you like that
I’m sneakin’ glances
Thankin’ God that he drew you like that
Beautiful black child
Come and shed your black cloud
For your vibe and your smile
I don’t mind a lil’ rain
I’m your dog
Ears perk up at the sound of your name
Count on your main, wildfire
Can’t handle your flame
Download your shame, wild high, come drown in your fragrance
You that red pill that a nigga found in the Matrix
Before I had you this shit was fantasy
You plant a seed to grow some roots, a branch and leaves
Becomes a tree of life until our nights are filled
With peace from stress and strife
And that’s the blessing that I get from wifing you
‘Cause you entrusted me with the key to your heart
Beaten you smart
‘Cause even though I need a new start
Due to my past transgressions, you believed in me
I guess the light I see in you is what you see in me, lord" -J. Cole "Pretty Little Fears" 


Lin Manuel says...

"Gmorning, love,
Your best impulse, the selfless impulse, let
it take the wheel.
Let it drive you toward the person you
dreamed to be."