Today's Prompt is I Thought About It! And don't laugh, but I really have painted an entire scenario of what my life would be like if I was a man for one day! I have thought about it and here's why. One day, after watching a rerun of Scandal I made a declaration, "Oh, if I had a penis for a day." As I watched Olivia Pope secure Fitz professional career after she had a complicated meeting with him, it became clear; Men live by completely different standards than women. Men have a completely different experience. As I do with many matters, I went to my mom, Mama Daisy. We both decided we would only need 24 hours of the experience. So here's how my day would look.
7 am- Wake up and scratch my balls. (I would probably marvel at myself for a while, honestly.) My mother laughingly said she would put her leg on a chair just to boast about herself. HA! This is a little inappropriate, but did you really expect me to leave this out?! 8 am- Shower and leave the house! I would have to get my day started early. I've only got 16 more hours of manhood. 9 am-12 pm- I would get breakfast up North in a very Caucasian restaurant, flirt with the waitress and experience what it is like to be a menace just because I am Black and a Man. I would find some woman to woo during this period too. 1 pm- I would drive around for an hour waiting to be pulled over. If I am left alone, I would gain more hope for my community. If, as expected, I am pulled over for a "rolling stop," I wouldn't be phased. I am, after all, a Black man. *I would wear a sweatshirt and sag for the first half of my day. I would like to know what it is like to be educated and Christian and be stereotyped as a thug.* 2 pm- I would change into much more appropriate clothes for an educated man, like a suit or a fitted slacks. I would then go to the Southside of Chicago and stand on the corner. I would avoid the areas where Black men dressed in slacks at all cost. 3-7 pm- I would spend my evening confounding the stereotypes of Black men, the ones we put on ourselves. I would also find a woman to woo during this period too. 8 pm- Now, I'm sure that most folks would expect me to find a bar or a club. BUT, I would go to a church. I would find out how many thots frequent the Lord's house. I would also fight off these fiendish women with the proclamation that I am abstinent. I would see how many church hoes would try to change that. 10 pm-12 am- I would spend my last hours as a man writing a book about all the times I was accused, accosted, and stereotyped. I would also talk about the many women I wooed during this period too. The next day I would chronicle my day as a woman and compare the difference between my male perspective and my female perspective. I mean, I was just thinking! Haha What would you do as a man?
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It never fails. You scroll down your feed on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram and some broken follower is spilling their guts all over your timeline. I've experienced everything from baby mama drama to suicide notes; all which were more about a spectacle than about true emotions. The unfortunate result of all the crying wolves I have on my timeline is that I don't care, not one bit.
I used to have compassion for the women on Facebook spewing about how their man did them so wrong and how they don't think they can love again. Now, I have politely gone and clicked unfriend due to the same rants. Social media will always be a catchall for exploitation of all kinds but my tolerance for the emo rant has dwindled to dust. I'm not claiming to be above the occasional urge to rant. After a long day of trials, even I am bound to post something, somewhere on the internet. But as an adult, I have learned that social media is not the place for your drama. Is it ever too much? Does it matter that we have found the internet as an outlet? Statistics suggest it does. Usage of social media has been linked with depression. A false sense of confidence is applied to the numbers on top of our feeds reflecting our followers and friends. And while you would think that more friends would be a good thing, users of social sites feel lonely when their rants go unnoticed. The numbers also become a point of competition. Social media isn't the cause of depression, but correlations suggest that triggers found online manifest depression symptoms in those apt such as the insecure. One Chicago Tribune article quoted Dr. Thomas Van Hoose on the issue. "'As simplistic as it sounds, turn it off." That's what U.T. Southwestern's Dr. Thomas Van Hoose says. Dr. Van Hoose also says if you mix isolation with feelings of negative self-worth, then you've got the recipe for depression." The article, entitled Social Networks and Depression, Doctors Weigh in on the Facebook Phenomenon, highlighted the connection that even I can see arising. People have turned to social media to vent instead of finding healthy outlets. I am a writer by nature. When I'm mad the only way for me to be calmed is through writing. So, I understand why men and women post, but I think that the risks of having the cousin of your roommate from college read about your heartbreak is too big to ignore. Have some self-worth and find healthy ways to say it with your chest. No matter how many likes your picture gets, no one likes a Debbie Downer on the internet. Still need to post about your tragic breakup? Do what I do, join Flava. Flava is a digital diary that you can download through the app store on your phone and post to online. You can post pics, videos and links. The best part about it is that it's private. Only you and God will know that your ex is a walking dick. :) Join Flava by visiting www.takeflava.com Am I being harsh? Or do you guys agree that the rant has got to go! Comment and share. I hate to talk about a topic that so many people have spoken on, but after much deliberation, I figured I'd burst your bubble anyway. CAUTION: Scandal lovers may not like this post. Before I begin. I would like to make a disclaimer. I believe that the writer of Scandal, Shonda Rhimes, is brilliant. The plot and story line are interesting and compelling. I also think Kerry Washington is one hell of an actress. I am very proud of Washington's breakthrough role as the first African American star on Prime Time television. Now that my niceties are out of the way, let me give you my full opinion. As a Black woman with hopes of being successful and having a family, I have many problems with the character Olivia Pope. Though she is a hard working, educated woman, she still is reduced to being a sex symbol. Why is that? Why is it that the only time we can have a Black female star on prime time television, she is reduced to having intercourse with a married man? Olivia Pope's character would have been just as compelling, maybe even more so, if she were to have a family of her own. I know I sound like i'm beating a dead horse, but I posit that there is more wrong with Olivia Pope than just her role as a sex symbol. CAUTION: Progressive Black thought entering... Olivia Pope's character promotes a continuation of the assumption that Black women serve no purpose in society, except for being the love interest to men. Don't believe me? Try to force yourself to see Olivia Pope and President Fitz's relationship outside of the context of the master/house slave love relationship after these next few sentences.
The role that Ms. Washington plays reveals the real issues in American Drama and Literature/ It reveals that not much has changed since the early 19th century in regards to race and gender relations. Women, especially Black women, don't get awarded unless they are degrading themselves. The only Best Actress Award given to a Black woman to date totes a full on naked appearance. We have just become glorified sex objects. Now, racist and sexist projections are slyly entered into culture, subliminally affecting how we see ourselves. So you see, the scandal in Scandal is that racist depictions of our culture have only been covered with accolades and fat payoffs. The scandal is that now we are allowing ourselves to play these role because they come with breakthrough time slots, Emmy nominations, and paychecks. I too was in the Scandal haze, until I had to chew on the nasty fatback of questioning the reality of myself having to be some White man's whore when I could afford a 401K. I was stuck at the fork in the road of whether to support this television show, which deserves an Emmy for it's drama. or boycott it for continuing the ideas that successful Black women cannot have families of their own. My final decision has been to stand outside of the masses who watch it, but join the ranks who read of the latest drama between Fitz an Olivia on Twitter. Hey, I'm an English Major. I do like good drama, just not at the expense of my own portrayal. Hope I didn't ruin your #ScandalThursday. I'm sure you'll still tune in at ten. |
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More About MkMk is 23 year old Chicagoan. She attended Howard University in Washington, D.C., studying English. Now back in Chicago, Mk has focused on writing her truths. Outside of ATS, she also writes on Youth Alert, a blog for young Christian believers. Mk is also a stylist at Akira Hyde Park. When she isn't working on the Mag, Youth Alert, or at Akira, Mk is with her family, she spends her time with a good book or cooking.
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