racism

I am not black, but I too­ — am tired. As a person of color in this country, from a background that may not scream Rockwell and apple pie, I am tired of explaining and trying to coherently lay out what it is to be the “other” to people who have not had the experience of having a background story, and destiny written for and about you ‑ before you are ever met.

While this is not about my or White people’s feelings, this is about White people’s violence. As White people in this country, it’s on us to dismantle White supremacy. Both the problem and the solution lie with us. This involves talking to other White people in our communities, having hard and uncomfortable conversations, examining and confronting our own privilege.

What initially broke as a story of possibly fraudulent misrepresentation by a public figure quickly morphed into the downfall of a highly disturbed and probably mentally ill woman.

I never thought I’d have to say this, but white people: stop using the race card. I’m serious. I’m getting sick and tired of the movement I’ve dedicated my life to being used as your weapon. I’m onto you — I see what you’re doing.

"Taking on a culture is one thing. But taking on a phenotype in the name of solidarity is perverse."

I am a woman of color, and when I first read the article, it made me think of the white women I know who exclusively date black men. And so Tess's comment, “I do admit that black men love me. I always forget that, and then I come to a black neighborhood and I remember,” was not a surprise to me. I know many black men who will date fat white women, but not fat women of color, which I find problematic. It's just one of many symptoms of internalized racism, which I'll get into another time.

The media would love for you to believe that they love fat bodies, but in truth, they mostly just love money.

Instead of categorizing people as different colors, I proposed we might begin to think of each other as Earthtones—because our skin colors are based on hues from the earth. Just as the planet is made up of a myriad of shades, it’s still one cohesive entity. We can be thought of as one entity also.