Laquavia Smith/Contributing Writer
Celebrities and public figures, with the increase of social media and their willingness to speak their mind, seem to feel untouchable. Nowadays, we are constantly being informed of who Justin Bieber punched, which celebrity Kanye West ranted about and who was the face targeted by Naomi Campbell’s cell phone.
However, with this heightened freedom of speech often comes disrespect. Our favorite celebrities — your favorite rappers — might be racist, sexist or even homophobic and to find this out all you have to do is click “follow.” My own favorite rapper, Young Thug, had a few words to say last week that really caught my attention.
The Atlanta rapper decided to record himself on Instagram conversing with ticket agents at an airlines. Now, you may ask, “what’s so attention grabbing about that?” Well, some of his words of choice included, “burnt,” “African,” “ants” and “nappy.” Minutes after posting the video, Young Thug’s frustrations, which included him not being allowed on the plane, became the topic of conversation. Young Thug was seen telling the camera how the girls wouldn’t let him board his plane, and that he would give them $15,000 each to quit their jobs.
“These two ants are so rude,” Young Thug said. “Look — these two ants are so rude, they’re peasants! They’re saying their manager is on the way. I don’t want to talk to the manager. Y’all are ants. Your manager is a peasant. And y’all are ants.”
He then went on to say that the African American women were bums, burnt and have nappy hair. Aside from the fact that I’m a woman, and let alone forgetting that I’m an African American woman, I’m truly offended because I’m natural.
I’m a woman of kinks and curls and naps, and I would raise all types of fuss if anyone was to ever call my hair “nappy.” I went to social media to see how they were responding to the rapper’s outburst. A prominent figure in the radio world, Charlamagne Tha God showed his agreement with my own annoyance by awarding Young Thug the “Donkey of the Day.” For those of you who are unfamiliar with Charlamagne’s radio show “The Breakfast Club” or “Donkey of the Day,” DOTD is awarded to individuals who are proclaimed stupid, racist, sexist or just foolish by said Charlamagne.
Charlamagne announced that Young Thug took a “huge L” and I believe the rest of the world agrees. On social media — Twitter specifically — numerous black women and men were not at ease with the rapper’s rant. One Twitter account, @WickedBeaute, did not find the ordeal as amusing as Young Thug did.
“Black men, like Young Thug, love projecting their self-hatred and insecurities on Black women who share the same features as them,” @WikedBeaute tweeted.
Most of the tweets displayed on BET.com, like this one, showed a negative reaction to Young Thug’s comments. One in particular that stood out to me was by @Novelistprice, which read, “Colorism. Misogynoir. Anti-blackness. Young Thug’s [actions] just shows the attitude some men have towards black women.”
I completely agree with this tweet. I personally know so many Black men who not only fantasize on the very thought of marrying outside of their race, but they make it their duty to simultaneously put down black women as a whole. I, as a cultured black woman, standing firm in her skin, try my best to have an influence on the young males I come in contact with. I wish I could’ve had the chance to bless Young Thug with my presence and help him to censor his thoughts and words.
If we’re being honest, Young Thug’s mechanism for coping with his frustration is really upsetting not just to me but to women and men around the world. Aside from his tweeted apology saying he wasn’t talking about “all” women, his remarks are still rude, offensive and lingering.
We are constantly put in the position where we have to decide whether to disregard the actions, words and ways of our favorite celebrities and separate “the real world” from our world. This “real world” being whichever mood, personality or altering persona the individuals we idolize choose to embody. Are we wrong for being upset? Is the fandom being judgmental and not understanding?
I think not. I believe celebrities, public figures, politicians, citizens should take into consideration who they are and what position they are in and behave accordingly. There should never be a point in time where a whole race, gender or sex of individuals feel targeted, bullied or disrespected. Rappers, let’s do better.
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Image retrieved from Flickr.
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