User:Dmlee26/sandbox

Black Twitter

#OscarsSoWhite

The #OscarsSoWhite hashtag was originally created in 2015 in response to the 87th Academy Awards lack of diversity amongst the nominees in major categories. The hashtag was used again when the nominations were announced for the 88th Academy Awards the following year. April Reign, activist and former attorney, who is credited with starting the hashtag, tweeted, "It's actually worse than last year. Best Documentary and Best Original Screenplay. That's it. #OscarsSoWhite." In addition, she includes that none of the Africa American cast of Straight Outta Compton was recognized, while the Caucasian screenwriter received nominations.

#SayHerName

The #SayHerName hashtag was created in February 2015 as part of a gender-inclusive racial justice movement. The movement campaigns for black women in the United States against anti-Black violence and police violence. Gender-specific ways black women are affected by police brutality and anti-Black violence are highlighted in this movement, including the specific impact black queer women and black trans women encounter. The hashtag gained more popularity and the movement gained more momentum following Sandra Bland's death in police custody in July 2015. This hashtag is commonly used with #BlackLivesMatter, reinforcing the intersectionality of the movement.

#IfIDieInPoliceCustody

#IfIDieInPoliceCustody is another hashtag that started trending after Sandra Bland's death. In the tweets, people provided explanations of why they would die in police custody and what to do if they died in police custody. The tweets revolved around police brutality and how easily it would be for any black person to end up in the same situation as Bland. The tweets embody a range of fear and outrage felt by the black community towards the police in America.

#ICantBreathe

The #ICantBreathe hashtag was created after the police killing of Eric Garner and the grand jury's decision to not indict Daniel Pantaleo, the police officer that choked Garner to death, on December 3, 2014. "I can't breathe" were Garner's final words and can be heard in the video footage of his arrest and killing. The hashtag trended for days and gained attention beyond Twitter. Basketball players, including Lebron James, wore shirts with the words for warm ups on December 8, 2014.

#HandsUpDontShoot

The #HandsUpDontShoot hashtag was created after the police shooting of Michael Brown and the grand jury's decision to not indict Darren Wilson, the white Ferguson police officer that shot Brown, on November 24, 2015. Witnesses claimed that Brown had his hands up and was surrendering when Wilson fatally shot him. However, this information was not credible and led to the jury's decision. Hands up, don't shoot is a slogan used by the Black Lives Matter movement and was used during protests after the ruling. The slogan was supported by members of the St. Louis Rams football team, who entered the field during a National Football League game holding their hands up. Using the hashtag on twitter was a form of showing solidarity with those protesting, show opposition to the decision, and bring attention to police brutality.

#BlackOnCampus

The #BlackOnCampus hashtag was started after multiple university officials resigned in Missouri, as well as other demonstrations at Ithaca College in New York, Smith College in Massachusetts, and Claremont McKenna College in California. The hashtag became an online discussion about racial inequality on college campuses, specifically microagressions that are often overlooked by administrators and Caucasian students. The tweets shed light on the daily struggles black students endure at school and are seen as a call to action to address structural racism on campuses.

Criticism

Labeling

While Black Twitter is used as a way to communicate within the black community, many people outside of said community and within do not understand the need to label it. Many black twitter users are starting to take offense by the labeling because it implies that it is somehow secondary. This can be a subtle way of segregating black people on Twitter. In regards to this concern, Meredith Clark, a professor at the University of North Texas who studies black online communities, recalls one user's remarks, "Black Twitter is just Twitter."

Intersectionality

Additional criticism of Black Twitter is the lack of intersectionality. Many sexist, homophobic, and transphobic tweets are made on Black Twitter. One example are the homophobic and transphobic tweets made after the rapper, Tyga, was pictured with transsexual actress, Mia Isabella. Alicia Garza, one of the founders of the Black Lives Matter movement, explained the importance of intersectionality and makes it one of the priorities in the movement. She wrote that many people find certain "charismatic black men" more appealing, which leaves "sisters, queers, trans, and disable [black] folk [to] take up roles in the background."

Social and Political Commentary Content

Racism

Black-ish addresses not only the racism that the Johnsons face as an upper-middle class African-American family, but also includes the racism African-Americans from a variety of backgrounds face in America. The "Pilot" episode starts off the series by introducing Dre's fear that his kids are too assimilated to their primarily white surroundings and losing their black culture. The episode also addresses racism African-Americans face in the workplace when Dre gets excited for a promotion at his advertising agency, which turns out to be for Senior Vice President of the Urban Division. In response, Dre questions, "Did they just put me in charge of black stuff?" This episode raises the question of where the line is drawn so that you are not defined by your race but your culture still remains relevant.

In the 25th episode, "The Word", Jack performs Kanye West's "Gold Digger" at school and says the N-word. The rest of the episode discusses the generational and multicultural perspectives of the word and how it has a different meaning to different people, even between different African-Americans. That different meaning comes with different guidelines and regulations for the use of the N-word based on the speaker, the context, and the audience.

LGBTQ+

The 22nd episode, "Please Don't Ask, Please Don't Tell". Dre's sister, Rhonda, is introduced. Rhonda is a lesbian but never officially came out to her family. Family members just gradually figured it out because of Rhonda's live-in girlfriend, however, no one ever acknowledges it. Andre admits that homosexuality is a topic that most African-Americans prefer to avoid, which is why he never discusses it with his sister. This leads to Rhonda not inviting any of her family members to her wedding and Andre finally talking to Rhonda about her sexuality.

Police Brutality

In the 40th episode, "Hope", the show tackles police brutality and Black Lives Matter as the family watches the news reporting about an unarmed young, black man's fatal run-in with police. Although the case was fictional, many real names, such as Freddie Gray and Sandra Bland, were included in the family's discussion. The debate format of the episode was able to address both sides of the situation and not completely villianize the police force. However, it leaned more towards the Black Lives Matter movement. The format also allowed for perspectives from different generations, backgrounds, and ideologies. The end of the episode revolved around a message of hope and the importance of protests, discussion, and attitudes when people are faced with tragedies from police brutality, assassinations, etc.

Black feminism

Black Feminist Celebrities

Beyonce has become one of the most famous and influential feminists today and uses her platform to address feminism, police brutality, and Black Lives Matter. Many of her songs have feminist themes, such as "Pretty Hurts", "Flawless", and "Blow", that focus on female empowerment, body image, and sexuality. Her sixth studio album, Lemonade, has been said to be made for black women. Beyonce's personal lyrics that address her culture, heritage, marriage, and partner's promiscuity humanizes her while also empowering all women. The 60-minute film that accompanied the album included a primarily African-American cast. At the end of her 2014 VMA performance, Beyonce stood on stand with "FEMINIST" displayed across the screen in huge block letters. For her 2016 VMA performance, Beyonce ended with her dancers laying on the ground around her and forming a female gender symbol.

Amber Rose focuses on a sex positive perspective on feminism by fighting slut shaming and promoting safe sex. Her main message is that a woman owns and is control of her own body and should not be judged by the way that she uses it. She takes control back by calling herself a "slut" or "hoe" and empowering herself with it instead of the normal degrading nature that comes with those terms. She also promotes having strong female relationship and not competing with each other.

Amandla Stenblerg approaches feminism as a way to dismantle patriarchy, empower women, and fight discrimination. She focuses on intersectionality and making sure that black and queer women are included within the movement, as a non-binary black women herself. She is openly against cultural appropriation and has uses her platform to criticize it, such as her video, "Don't Cash Crop My Cornrows", targeting Kylie Jenner. Ms. Foundation for Women named her "Feminist of the Year" in 2015. She appears in Beyonce's "Formation" music video, which focuses on embracing one's blackness and supports Black Lives Matter.

Zendaya sees feminism as equality and fairness through the empowerment of women, but takes a specific perspective as a black woman. In 2015, E! host, Guiliana Rancic made racist comments about Zendaya's dreadlocks on the red carpet at the 87th Academy Awards. In response to Rancic's remark that Zendaya looked like she smelled of weed, Zendaya went to Instagram to address discrimination, stereotyping, ignorance, and body shaming. She recognizes her own privilege as a light skinned black women and has spoken out about colorism. She also appears in Beyonce's "Formation" music video.