A Lesson on Worthiness: My Existence is My Worth.

I'm not a feminist, at least not in the traditional sense of the word. I'm not a womanist either. Sure there are aspects from each movement I identify, agree and am settled with but my "self" still doesn't fully fit in either one. I can say that I love being a woman and specifically, a black woman. Throughout my life, I've been around different cultures, races, enviornments and in many instances I've never fully fit in any one of them....just like the gender-based movements previously mentioned. This square-peg-in-a-round-whole social existance has pretty much helped me keep it simple on what I personally need to know about how I see myself in a label insistent world. I can't, however, pretend that the flowing, living waters of my soul's existence has not been made murkey by the lens of another's mind.

I have been beyond frustrated by the way that the media has attempted to chip away at Serena Williams' womaness and feminanity and many other women of color (WOC) over the years. First off, she's an athlete and most atheletes have an athletic build, male or female. This usually involves these things called defined muscles and very little body fat. See, us mere mortals very rarely see this type of god-like physique on ourselves or in a ubiquitous manner because, well, we're not athletes for a living and don't get paid to be so. It might be me, but I think that it's a simple concept; if you're an athlete, you'll be in shape and pop some major muscles out here and there.....I don't know, maybe it's just me *shrugs shoulders*.

Well, in the words of Adam Savage,

"I reject your reality and substitute my own."

Let's come to an understanding on some things: we don't see with our eyes, we see through them. Your mind is like the CPU of your body and everthing that you experience, judge and measure is corelated through your mind. Your mind tells you what is. So, if when you see a black woman with an athletic body and you describe what you see as manly, masculine and/or a monkey, it's because that's what you think which has determined what you see. Now, everyone has free will to think what they want to think. That's not my concern or my business. What I am concerned about is the lack of support of women by women; ALL women.

Now, the #BlackLivesMatter Movement has truly attracted its antagonists....."No, no, no! That's being divisive so we'll high-horse ya with #AllLivesMatter."......when I saw that hashtag it was like being in 2 different worlds at the same time. World 1 was like, "Dang! Can't we have anything?!?!?!". World 2 was like Daria, The Colored Version, "Unbothered." My point is this, lifting up pride and awareness for your own culture, race, gender, high school or favorite color does not, in any way, minimize the importance of other cultures, races, gender, high schools or colors. Imagine a feminist creating the hashtag, #FemaleLivesMatter in order to bring more awareness about the societal perspective on violence against women and the judicial system and then a man responds with "No, no, no! That's being divisive honey, #AllLivesMatter." Does that mean the feminist believes that female lives are more important than male lives?......I think you get my point.

I'll end with this. My reality is that of a black woman that believes she is not limited in life by the thoughts of anyone but her own. However, if my being black is in direct connection to words or acts of dehumanization, apathy, discrimination, being killed, etc then I must thrust forth the fact that my race does not dictate my worth in the human collective, my existence does.

I see no divisiveness in that....oh yeah and, #BlackLivesMatter & #SayHerName

xo,

Lorea