Let me start off by saying, that this week I will not be talking about the books I’ve read.
As those who read my posts you’ve already come to realize that I love to talk through the books I’ve read. Giving my opinions on situations that take place in the books, and sometimes correlating them to current events.
I do this because, how can you possibly offend someone when you’re talking about fictional characters… Right?
And I also do this because it’s sometimes easier to accept an opinion or a fact, when it isn’t tied to yourself or to someone you actually know.
However, this week…
I’m tired y’all…
Tired.
Let me go back to 2003, it was my first year of practical university, the Dutch called this one a “HBO”, I later went on to a “WO” education (Scientific University).
There was a referendum that the University organized, around the rise of Social Media. One of the observations I offered at that referendum was the fact that Social Media, was making people…
Not that Social.
People who would seek me out online, would not even address me when in the same physical space. And if Social Media was about connection… Why didn’t it translate into connections offline?
Being a Xennial, I used Social Media to connect with people all over the world, so I could learn more about them, their societies, and myself. Being an Introvert, this was a great way for me to form new relationships, without having to be “on” all the time.
However, for me there was always the notion of Social Media, the online world, not being real. In the sense that even though it can have real life implications, it doesn’t impact my offline life.
I can admit that I’m peculiar in a sense, like most people are, because I have never wanted to be famous, or popular. I have always craved true connections, with genuine people that are true to themselves.
And here comes Social Media, propping up the bullies of the world, those that aren’t seen in the offline world who reinvent themselves online. In search of a platform, that is easily given to those with the loudest voices, drowning out those who actually want to enact change.
Because for those loud voices it isn’t about what’s right, or what’s genuine. It’s about getting platformed, so they can finally be seen, so they can finally be put into a position of power, so they can sell their products, so they can clean up their image, and so on.
…Now let’s take that offline shall we.
And my question then becomes, who are you there? Your overt racism, your “hot” takes, your “unpopular” opinions… What are they there?
Having seen some of the people I interacted online with, or have seen their online rhetoric of…
- The beautiful woman?
looks “different”… - The nice person?
can’t quite mask their vileness offline… - The overt racist?
Turns to micro-agressions or fawning, so they won’t face consequences…
SheReadsaLot to SheReadsaLot: It’s like having a screen in front of them gives them a sense of safety to act the way they want to act.
SheReadsaLot:
The people screaming the loudest online that Trump is a Pedophile, and to Fuck Ice, Black Lives Matter, and whichever cause has become popular at the moment is used to gain followers, to build their platform, to sell products. While not doing anything to enact their stance in the offline world, or worse yet doing exactly the opposite to make life miserable for those they claim to defend online.
The people screaming for others/celebrities to speak out online, to make their stance known online, so they know if these people are the safe “other” to still be following, as if them saying they are one of the good ones, actually means that they are.
It’s…
Tiring..
I have to remind myself once again… Social Media isn’t real. Yes it has real life consequences, it gets information out there so that people can act on it, but the bigger part of it is the marketing aspect of it. It’s selling personalities, It’s selling products…
And it’s why I don’t expect anyone to speak out online, because the real change needs to happen offline. I expect people to see the readily available information online. Use it to learn, apply this in situations that fit, and I expect changed behavior.
Because one of the things people seem to forget about, is that most of these platforms are in the hands of the oppressors. Why would you want to give them the playbook on how to better understand you? To better find you?
SheReadsaLot to Audience: Now you’re probably wondering why I am writing about this, and why I feel it’s tiring?
Those that truly know me, know that I’m a lot of things…
I am a Pro-Black Woman. I am the eldest daughter on both sides, I am a survivor of Child Sexual Assault, I am the niece of a Queer Woman, I am the mother of Black children, I am the wife of a Black man, I am neurodivergent, I have an invisible illness, I am a Xennial, I am intelligent, and I am peri-menopausal.
These elements don’t make up the sum of me, AND it does mean that it makes me extremely opposed to all that’s happening, and will always have me fighting for the underdog. It also means that I don’t have any patience or energy for performative change. I won’t try and convince someone to speak out online; I won’t call them out for that either. Because frankly?
Having said all that…
Remember I’m a Pro-Black woman, so seeing that
Were placed under federal arrest for doing their jobs, for enacting their civil rights, for simply being who they are. And seeing the vile comments being made? for seeing the way news outlets decided to cover this story!
It was not surprising, yet disappointing. Because a lot of people were screaming about the injustice of state sanctioned violence… And finally “got it”, but only because now they weren’t protected anymore.
SheReadsaLot to SheReadsaLot: We was telling them… The performance! Vying for likes is one hell of a drug!
SheReadsaLot: Talking about wanting to go back to “regular police violence”
SheReadsaLot to SheReadsaLot: Didn’t even take them one week to forget all about all the outrage for their constitutional rights being trampled on, because now they finally see they come for us first, but it’s always going to be them too.
SheReadsaLot: You know that it’s hard for them to relate to people with a different color skin than them right…
SheReadsaLot to SheReadsaLot: But they can see themselves in the vilest of vile of humanity, lacking of morals, human decency, and will STILL accept their words as gospel, because they are YT.
SheReadsaLot:
And that same day… Remember… I am a survivor of Child Sexual Assault more files dropped, and Trump is all over them…
But this was something that has been known for years, survivors had BEEN speaking out! And people still decided to prop him up, and are still falling all over themselves to kiss his diapered %SS.
The same people who spoke out online about how disgusting pedophiles are;
People: But we were talking about Pizzagate, the Democrats!!
About how women should be respected;
Remember 14 year old Emmett Till?
People: But he was Black, and should know how to respect his superiors!
About how rapists, should get their due;
People: But these were women, dOeS iT mAtTer that they were uNdeRaGed women!
How murder is bad!
People: But that only counts when they kill us!
I have to remind myself once again, that those people will in many cases let their comforts take precedent over what’s right. And some people will do their damnedest to protect their crumb, even if they can get a complete plate, if this means the advancement of all.
It’s also telling that those who are always eager to invade other countries (U.N. I’m looking at you) under siege of fascism, are very much quiet, but then I look back at history…
Called upon South Africa to abandon its policy of
apartheid; and Sanctioned South Africa for Apartheid.
Never disposed to act regarding Jim Crow, given the US vetoProfessor Ursula Tracy Doyle, Phd
– Strange Fruit at United Nations
One of the many reasons how we got to this place becomes very much obvious.
Accountability.
Those that should take it, don’t, and those that should be enforcing or upholding it. Aren’t doing it either.
And I’m left wondering… If online performance isn’t translating to offline, If people and institutions are unwilling to learn from history. What does that leave us with?
I can only defer to those knowledgeable on these subjects like the community organizers, those who studied history (e.g. Professor Feminista Jones, Dr. Stacey Patton),and those actually with their boots on the ground. AND I’m still going to leave some words by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
…freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
– Letter from a Birmingham Jail
I remain faithful that human decency and compassion isn’t a rarity in the world anymore. Because as much as I’ve seen the negative sides, I’ve seen the way we came together online and offline as well.
I’m done for today, Happy Black History Month!
That we all continue to learn, and do better!
👩🏾SheReadsaLot 