"Sassy" and "angry" are two adjectives commonly assigned to black people. They are an attempt to discourage any kind of backlash. When a black woman says she is unhappy living in a world where she is constantly reminded of her skin color, constantly told she is lesser, we say she is an Angry Black Woman. In order to silence anger at prejudice, we feed the prejudice, ask that society look down upon this person, add more labels.
I think a lot of Rankine's focus on Serena Williams was in relation to the response Serena received. As soon as the outburst left her lips, Williams became an Angry Black Woman. The commentators were quick to criticize her, to distance themselves from the black-against-a-white-background. And her continual critiques throughout even her victories served as a White reminder that anyone who dissents will not be excused for their behavior, no matter how many trophies they earn thereafter.
And it is all fear. We fear because, deep down, we know we are in the wrong. And she is right. And the minute that we stop pushing her down, that we stop denying the Angry her anger, is the minute we lose all that we gained from the system.
Beautifully written. I agree with your reasoning behind why we fear the 'angry black person.' Similarly, I think we attribute the poor state of many inner-city black communities to laziness and lack of family values in order to avoid recognition of our own historical complicity in the creation of black ghettos.
ReplyDeleteGabe, your insight never ceases to impress. I think it is interesting the way you bring up the way that labeling a black person (usually black women) as "sassy" or "angry" silences their emotions. The representation of black women in TV and movies consists of the big sassy black woman who is just that: one-dimensional. When the media teaches us to view "the other" this way, we are left with an extremely limited and narrow understanding of our real-world surroundings.
ReplyDeleteI definitely feel you on the insight that we are all in the wrong and Serena is right. And a lot of people are complicit and happy in their own little corner of the system we built to benefit ourselves. I think the next step to eliminate this complacent behavior is on an individual level. We all need wake up and smell the privilege.
ReplyDeleteNice writing. I also blogged about "black anger," especially with black women. I agree that people use "sassy" and "Angry black woman" to discredit black women, even though black people historically have way more to be mad about than white people. When a white dude is mad, it's seen as acceptable, but for a black woman, she is over dramatic and "sassy."
ReplyDeleteLove the way you explained your point of view, it is refreshing and very insightful. I agree with what you said and think this "fear" needs to be addressed in society.
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