Come to think about it, respectability politics has many many nooks, crannies, valleys and pockets that a lot of people haven't even examined. Here's my take on it.
When we think about respectability politics, we automatically think of people with professional careers like Dr. Huxtable (Bill Cosby's character), Don Lemon, Ben Carson, and (for the better or worse) Stacey Dash. We think about the rhetoric that comes out of their mouths. We think about Black on Black crime, clothing, jobs church, Martin Luther King, ...well, you get the point. But I see the following:
Nobody actually takes a look at how harmful respectability politics are. They condition people to beg for respect under certain circumstances. It's more of a "Am I doing it right? See my clothes, I speak 'properly', and I denounce anything remotely Black. I'm good, right?"
And I say GET THE FUCK OUTTA HERE! to all of that and I say that we should re condition ourselves to demand respect by not begging for it. I say we should actually look at all possible avenues respectability politics tends to invite itself into.
Take the older generation. Some of them are firm believers in the 'begging for respect' avenue. They are so into it that they talk all kinds of crap about those who aren't like them. This creates the "I'm better than you because :
- I dress better than you
- I make more money than you
- I look better than you
- I speak more eloquently than you
- I'm smarter than you" argument.
They do it openly and gratuitously to the point where kids pick it up. They will imitate it in various ways. The older person might be on the phone talking about what "This (insert derogatory name) did" how, "he/she ain't shit." The kids will not only look down on people they feel are inferior to them, they will do two things:
- KILL each other, or
- become a "special snowflake".
When I say "special snowflake" I'm talking about the Don Lemons and those who talk bad about people who they think don't fit their idea of whose worthy of their attention and who isn't.
This is why same Black people say disparaging remarks about other Black people, and they may do this in White spaces as well in order to distance themselves from the rest of "the others".
This is also why a lot of young Black people kill each other. It's because they see another Black person and they treat them like their rival. It's also the same as why some corporate Black people (that list of folks I mentioned earlier) will spend time throwing salt at other types of Black people they feel who fit their idea of inferiority. There are two forms of death mentioned, one verbal and one physical. Enter "The Dirty Dozens" here. It was supposed to be a fun game where each jokester uses language in order to demean the other person. Each person takes a turn, and tries to one up the other with the funniest joke about their opponent. Now I've played this game, as long as it was clear that it was a game and not something to be used to insult another person and make them feel inferior. But this game was also used to hurt people, or verbally kill someone. I suspect the hurting comes from the type of argument I mentioned above.
Needless to say, this is a generational problem. Respectability politics have been carried around since its inception, and it's very toxic. It needs to be completely removed from our teachings and lessons. The older generations really need to quit dragging down other Black people and passing it on to their kids. This is why the kids kill each other. This is why we have some Black people:
- being so willing to sell each other and themselves out by dry snitching on themselves and friends
- writing entire raps about killing other Black people
- are disrespecting the women
- are completely ignoring the efforts of Black women in favor of Black men (inside and outside the corporate setting)
- scrutinize other Blacks who are trying to start businesses
- hate those who are poor or not as "attractive" as them
- define who is a "real nigga" or "the baddest bitch"
- say "it ain't nothing to cut that *** off"
- beat the hell out of their children in order to get them to behave like they want them to.
Not only that, they are doing a lot of these things in order to be liked, or in order to get money; from Clarence Thomas to any mainstream rapper that surprised some of us regarding how they got signed. But here's the thing:
I get it, we need money. All people invested in capitalism need money regardless of their race.
But at what cost are we willing to go there in order to get it?
Solutions, you ask? Well here it is. I think we need to divorce ourselves from respectability politics all together. We need to break up with it and cut that shit off, for real. It's killing all of us. Some of us won't be able to make it out. Just ask Clarence Thomas and Mia Love. But some of us will and can. Now I'm not saying that we all will be able to magically get along with each other and live in harmony, but divorcing respectability politics and re conditioning ourselves would be a great start because you can't cuss out and mistreat your people in order to get them to unify. If Morgan Freeman can wake up after providing the mantra for "self professed 'color blind' people" then there is a still a bit of hope in my heart.
You know what? America worries waaay too much about what's going on with Black people and Dylan Roof is proof of that. He said that Black men rape his women, and that we are taking over even though he killed mostly women. His manifesto mentioned Trayvon Martin, Black on Black crime and Black on White crime not being reported (even though the cases mentioned have been resolved and the aggressors have been tried and sentenced accordingly).
That sentiment is as old as this country, and it still gets passed down to several generations.
Has anybody ever figured how America is invested in making sure that White people are viewed in the best light possible? Could that be why they pretend crime doesn't happen in their neck of the woods to the point where less than favorable statistics get hidden and couched in "soft language" if the media grabs hold of the information? Have they figured that America really needs a "bad guy" so after they thought they were done making sure the Native Americans were thoroughly portrayed as the bad guys, they continued to put their focus on Blacks?
Could it be they kept that legacy going by distributing propaganda about Blacks in America to the point where people in other countries ate it up? Could that be the result of why people from other countries come to The States and cape so hard to the point of compromising their integrity by any means necessary? I'm not just looking at Bobby Jindal, and Brown border patrol members. I'm looking at Don Lemon, Rachael Dolezal's husband, Mia Love, Ben Carson, and Raven Symone, etc I'm looking at YOU too.
Could it be that White America is so obsessed with Black people to the point of trolling their spaces in person or online, or by disguising themselves as Black in order to make any and all issues about them because they felt left out (Rachael Dolezal, John Howard Griffin cough cough) instead of creating their own UNIQUE lane that gives White people flavor without stealing the seasoning from other people's cabinets? And when something along the lines of that gets brought to their attention, they show up in droves just to make disparaging comments or throw racial slurs at said Black person even if their messages are positive, or change the subject by derailing the conversation, or by presenting loaded questions they really don't want an answer to.
Could "feeling left out" be the reason why they enter all of our genres of music under the guise of "making it better"? Could this be why when they enter our genres, they win all of the awards, and become the "standard" even when their songs really aren't that great? Could it be that whenever a Black person speaks about issues in this country, somebody comes from out of nowhere to say #NotAllWhitePeople or #AllLivesMatter even though that's a given? Could "feeling left out" be the real reason why White people feel the need to say "Hey! We're oppressed too because freedom of speech and political correctness is ruining us!" every time they're faced with consequences for doing or saying something really messed up?" Could this be why whenever they get caught doing or saying racist things, they find a non White person to cosign the foolishness as if they can never stand on their own two feet and be accountable for anything?
The whole thing looks like a metaphor for The Spice Trade to me because they steal from those they feel are lesser in order to make money. It's like they said, "Fuck substance, get money." and actually lived by it.
Google "The Spice Trade" to see what I'm talking about.
Anyway, Any time some racially motivated crime happens where Black people are the victims, it's always about fear. Fear of Black people. It's why Black people have to "be approachable" It's why respectability politics exist. If you look at respectability politics and examine the definition, it really means "What does a person have to do in order to be 'respectable' to the people or person in power?".
But they fail to recognize that when Black people did for themselves, were respectable and pulled themselves up by the bootstraps, it wasn't enough so they had to burn down Greenwood in Tulsa, Oklahoma out of rumor based fear and jealousy.They also stole the farmland belonging to Black farmers.
(Google "Black Wall Street, Little Africa" and "Whitecapping" to see what I'm talking about.)
Respectability politics are designed to keep Black people begging to be respected. That's it. Respectability politics are why victim blaming exists. It's why older people don't respect younger people. It's why some Black people choose to talk mess about those they feel are "not respectable" to the point of Black shaming. It's also why each time something racial happens, some Black people choose to engage in shaming their own. I can't do that because I can see what's going on. Each time a Black person shames their own, it continues the cycle of supremacy. They can say something along the lines of "See? They don't even like themselves! Haha!"
Respectability politics are a trap. It's a deep long, winding trap that has corners and pits that people don't really look that far into. That being said:
I have faith in the young people. I see what they're doing. BUT sucking up to the mainstream media and big orgs is NOT the business. It's a form of respectability politics. They want to be liked SO bad that they clique up with people that don't have their best interests in mind.
Those orgs, and mainstream media look like the creepy person with the rape van talking about "candy" or a "free puppy" to me. They are designed to kidnap people and do what Ralph Ellison mentioned in his book titled "Invisible Man":
"Keep This Nigger-Boy Running".
They do it by derailing people and controlling how they move. They appoint a "leader" and that leader may report to someone else. That someone else could have a paycheck (candy or free puppy) in store for those following them, or they might simply deny access to things or issues that need to be addressed. And the media sucks it up so people could bask in it (asking Black people for forgiveness).
If there are any young people out there, all I could say is this:
Don't be gullible and watch what people say and do. Move accordingly. Stay focused on what matters and don't let anybody derail the issue. Watch for snakes and wolves. Don't sell your$elf out in order to gain friends. Those friends may not be who they say they are. "Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer." is more than just a facebook meme or rap lyric. The real trick is knowing exactly WHO your enemies are. Keep moving forward. And remember there is no one singular direction. Choosing singular directions is a good way to allow yourselves to get derailed. Stay focused. Be safe. Be prepared. Be brave. Be brazen. Just BE.
