Sis, I know the role you’ve been playing because it’s the same damn role I played for far too long. I’m talking about the good girl role where you keep quiet, stay back, and only speak when you’re spoken to.
Don’t believe me? Take one fucking look at the world around us. Who do you see in charge? Who’s making the calls? Who do you report to on a daily basis?
And if you dare speak your mind and it doesn’t relate to the whitewashed thoughts in the room? Then get ready for it, buttercup. You’ll never hear the end of it. The laughter, the berating, the “Who does she think she is?” side eyes.
And once in a while, our social circles and work spaces do the so-called right thing and be more inclusive. They adopt a token Black friend or hire a POC representative. Because it looks good. And I suppose it makes a piece of those groups feel good, too.
Good for fucking them.
But being seen is one thing. We need to be seen AND heard. In ALL the spaces we occupy.
Because otherwise who we are at our core will never be taken seriously. And I don’t know about you, but I happen to think that if there’s one thing any of us should take seriously, it’s our damn futures.
Live Your Authentic Truth
Look, I know you have a closet full of masks you throw on as if every occasion you leave your front door is a party. Only, it ain’t a party. Not at all. It’s a necessity. And even though those masks slide on easily, they don’t fit right.
You know the masks I mean. They’re the ones you carry with you so that when you go to a board meeting, you show up “professional.” And when you get together at a neighborhood gathering, you show up “collected.” And when you’re in a public crowd, you’re anything but the Angry Black Woman.
Because in each situation, there are expectations as to who you should be and what it should look like. But none of them are even close to being you.
It’s For You
We’re taking off the masks and entering those spaces authentically. With the language you speak (even with the fucks and damns and shits that roll off your tongue.) With the body language that comes naturally to you. And most importantly, with your opinions and ideals without holding back.
Because we’re done putting on a show for other people. We simply want to exist as we are. Without having to second guess if someone is going to shame us or look down on us or question why we’re not holding back our true selves.
And if they do question it? Well, that’s on them.
You deserve to be seen without someone else’s opinion painting you a specific way. And you deserve to break your voice out of its cage and let your ideas be heard.
It’s For Your Sis
Girl, you know exactly what I mean by this. If you’ve felt pushed out of your spaces, imagine how shoved aside others feel, too. You’ve seen their faces. You know they clam up when they don’t think they should be talkin’ and you know they hide away because they feel like the rest of the room doesn’t want to acknowledge whatever “difficulty” they assume a Black voice will bring.
But if you say “fuck it” to all the stereotypes others want to stick on you and start showing up as you are… you open up a brand new door to others to do the same.
You pave the way for other women to decide that they’re worth demasking, that their ideas should be heard, and that their authenticity is exactly the thing that the world needs more of.
We’ve all known we’ve been part of a sisterhood, it’s just that the world hasn’t fully seen it yet. And this is one way to shake down the walls and make sure everyone knows it. Making sure you’re seen and heard creates a path for yourself, and all the sisters who are in the same spaces.
The Power in Being Seen and Heard
So much of our world has been about what others expect of us. And historically, that’s been a pretty shitty trade. We show up as we’re told, and we don’t reap a single fucking benefit from it.
Yes, you deserve to be seen. Not just a representation of you, but YOU, yourself. The things that make you unique to your core, your ideas that shape connections and interactions, the things you love and the things that come with ease.
Why? Because yes, you get to see the benefits that way. Your authenticity will naturally ask the universe for the things that you need to move forward with the badass life you want. But also? The rest of the world around you gets to benefit, too.
Because they get the pleasure of being in the presence of a true spirit.
And they get the permission to empower themselves with authenticity, too.
