“And uh, I know they like to beat ya down a lot.
When you come around the block brothas clown a lot.
But please don’t cry, dry your eyes, never let up
Forgive but don’t forget, girl keep your head up “ – 2Pac
In 1993, rapper Tupac Shakur released “ Keep Ya Head Up “ as a memorable tribute to uplift black women and also as a friendly reminder that they are loved, regardless how they look and what they are going through. What was most interesting to me about this track is how Tupac called out all the brothers disrespecting their sisters and abandoning them, while telling them that they look even more stupid to disrespect their black sister when they came out of a black woman.
Today, colorism is a huge problem within our black community, especially towards our black women. Back in the day, we would hear conversations about “ light-skins” and “ dark-skins “, but not to the extent of how it is being talked about today.
Now, that conversation would become more of bashing towards dark skin women more than ever.
As of recently, singers Ari Lennox and Teyana Taylor were targets of Twitter bashing after an Internet troll would go and compare their physical appearance to rottweilers. What was the most craziest thing about it? The Twitter bashing was coming from a black man.
Now, although the conversation of “light-skins” and “ dark-skins “ did not take it any further than just organic jokes back in the day, there were few artists back in the day that received backlash for their appreciation for lighter melanin women than darker melanin women.
In the same year as Tupac’s “ Keep Ya Head Up”, reggae singer, Buju Banton released “ Love Me Brownin’ “ off of his Mr. Mention debut album. This song gained popularity on the charts, but many began to question Buju’s selective love for lighter brown skin women and whether or not he actually liked dark-skin women. Because of this, Banton would then released “ Love Black Woman “ where he showed his appreciation to all women of all different skin complexions.
In response to the Internet troll, Ari Lennox would then take it to IG Live where she asked “ Why are there so much hate towards Black women ? Why are WE compared to dogs and their much praise to other races ?”
Lennox’s emotional outcry and firm response to the situation received so much love and support by many fans and other fellow celebrities.
If I may say, I believed that all women are beyond beautiful, especially our black sisters. The way society been treating black women is utterly disgusting and disrespectful that I feel very hurt that our own brothers are here bringing this self-hate mantra to the public like this. Ari Lennox, you are beautiful honey and a BLACK Queen in your own right.
What are your thoughts ? Do you believe that Ari Lennox went a little overboard in her response to the a-hole on IG Live ? As black men, do we need to love our black women more?
We always value your thoughts, comments and opinions. Happy New Year everyone. #BlackWomenAreBeautiful #PositiveVibes2020
Please subscribe for more articles from TUCMedia. #TRU
