#JamesBaldwin
's response to a Yale professor asking “So why must we always concentrate on color?” is still the most fire answer in answer history. Happy Birthday!
i saw two grammy voters quoted in that variety article who said they didn't vote for beyoncé because she always wins and every time she does something new "it's a big event" and it really pisses me off. people just don't like seeing Black women win "too much." it's nasty.
not to be dramatic or anything but
#PixarSoul
is exactly what i needed to watch after the year we’ve had. such a good reminder to just live your life. you aren’t only your work or your aspirations.
there’s a reason why mac is respected. he participated in a genre created by black people. he understood his privilege, amplified & studied rappers who were black, studied the history & never once asked you to big him up for it. an example for white bodies in black spaces.
the way tv and hip-hop were so connected in the 90s is something i’ll never forget. and it gave us one of the best songs in the kenan and kel theme by coolio. rest in peace.
this picture of rosa parks getting her hair done will always be my favorite. i love seeing our ancestors who fought for freedom doing “normal, everyday things,” because it’s a reminder that they were more than their work. they were real people who sacrificed a lot for liberation.
“you always told me it takes time. it’s taken my father’s time, my mother’s time. my uncle’s time, my brother’s and my sister’s time. my niece’s and my nephew’s time. how much time do you want, for your progress?” - james baldwin
marcy borders, holding a picture of herself covered in dust after the twin towers collapsed. she worked as a legal assistant at the bank of america in the wtc, and passed away from stomach cancer in 2015. she believed her cancer was triggered by the toxic dust she was exposed to.
“the problem is that reforms have often rendered the institution itself more permanent.” - angela davis perfectly explaining why reform isn’t enough and that abolition is the only way to go ✈️
this is why people are saying to not share videos showing protestors’ faces. ferguson activists died violently and/or mysteriously in the years since mike brown’s murder. you could be saving lives by not sharing.
i can't even describe the feeling i felt for months seeing her face everywhere. her being memed. name being used as a pun. merch being made for personal profit. events named after her. the sadness and trauma of it all, in our faces every single day. it sucks man.
take a break! if you are tired or burnt out REST! people love trying to tell us that a minute of not working means our dreams are cancelled but that’s capitalism playing tricks on you. REST.
you know what would be helpful right now? if
@instagram
made it possible to swipe up with less than 10k followers so people can go directly resources, videos, audio, books, etc. on what's happening.
beyoncé told chloe x halle to adopt the no scroll rule and i want more of us to take this advice. everything doesn’t need a reaction or your energy. as a matter of fact, everything doesn’t need to be seen ☝🏾
"my goal is to bring real Black america-just as it is, not watered down-to people everywhere through music, through films, through everything we do.” - andre harrell
“I am a Black woman. I’m free. I no longer have to be a ‘credit.’ I don’t have to be a symbol to anybody; I don’t have to be a first to anybody. I don’t have to be an imitation of a white woman that Hollywood sort of hoped I’d become. I’m me, and I’m like nobody else.”
solange said “i’m not a big fan of talking about shit i don’t know yet. i’m really down for showing the process, and staying quiet when it hasn’t all yet being revealed.” and that’s really it.
no because why do i feel like one of my homegirls is pregnant lol?! i literally grew up with keke and she was and still is everywhere. so happy for her! 🫶🏾✨