GramCracker

WHEN DID BLACK WOMEN BECOME PROPERTY OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY? I have watched the absolutely disgusting attacks against Nicki Minaj because she dared to associate herself with President Donald Trump. And what disgusts me most is the audacity of people who preach Black empowerment while attempting to publicly humiliate a Black woman who exercises her own political sovereignty. For centuries, Black women were denied the freedom to determine their own destinies. Their bodies were scrutinized, their dignity assaulted, and their individuality subordinated to the demands of people who believed they knew what was best for them. Remember Sarah Baartman, the African woman exhibited in Europe as the so-called Hottentot Venus? Her body was turned into a spectacle for the amusement and examination of others. Now look at the political spectacle surrounding Nicki Minaj. Her appearance, her sexuality, her marriage, her family, her past. Everything becomes ammunition the moment she steps outside the political boundaries others have established for her. I’m not equating today’s political criticism with the historical exploitation of Sarah Baartman. I’m asking why the impulse to publicly degrade a Black woman remains so easy to recognize. Where are the feminists screaming MY BODY, MY CHOICE? Where are the champions of Black female independence? Where are the people who insist that Black women deserve autonomy, dignity, and the freedom to make decisions without being controlled by others? Apparently, those principles become negotiable when a Black woman refuses to conform to their political orthodoxy. @NICKIMINAJ Nicki Minaj is not obligated to vote Democrat. She is not obligated to hate Donald Trump. She is not obligated to explain her political associations to people who believe Black identity comes with a mandatory political allegiance. And she certainly isn’t responsible for every action committed by someone related to her. If you disagree with her politics, challenge her arguments. If you disagree with President Trump, challenge his policies. But attempting to discredit a Black woman by excavating every humiliating detail of her personal life isn’t an argument. It’s an attempt at social punishment. And I find something particularly repugnant about people claiming to defend Black women while celebrating the public degradation of one who refuses to obey them. Black sovereignty means the freedom to think independently, even when that independence makes other people uncomfortable. Nicki Minaj belongs to herself. Not the Democratic Party. Not the Republican Party. Not the political establishment. Not the people who believe they own the Black vote. You cannot claim to support the liberation of Black women while demanding their political obedience. That’s not empowerment. That’s conditional freedom. And conditional freedom is not freedom at all. #AStoneGroove #SilentMajoritySpeaks