racism | Alice Vega

Hey everyone,

I know it’s been a minute since I last posted, but I’m here. Just been takin’ care of things. I think it’s called life. Oh life… sometimes you just kick my ass a little too hard.

But as usual, I’ve been sitting here thinking a lot about a little bit of everything and I’ve recently discovered yet a new perspective of myself that I haven’t given much thought to.

I’m a bitch. And I’m totally ok with that.

Obviously it’s taken me a while to accept and embrace this fact about myself. You might be sitting here wondering how the hell a commonly degrading word can be empowering, but it can. You just have to change your attitude and control the power dynamic.

Women are generally taught to be submissive, polite, and quiet. It’s never really encouraged to speak up, especially against a man. We’re usually taught to just walk away from things that make us uncomfortable instead of facing it head on. We’re basically being programmed at birth to aspire to marry and start a family.

But what happens when a woman doesn’t follow this formula? As a society, we tend to shun her. We reprimand her for being too vocal and assertive. We make her feel guilty of her sexual choices. We become disappointed in her if she’s spending too much time at work and not enough time with her family, but criticize her work ethic when she chooses her family over work.

Don’t believe me? We see it ALL the time in the media. The recent controversy with Duke freshmen Belle Knox is one example. The unfortunate incident in Steubenville is another example. Or how about how the government is up in arms about giving women access to birth control? The list goes on and on. And that’s fucking sad.

I’m a bitch because I’m tired of this shit. I’m tired of people looking at me like some dainty little flower that can’t handle anything by herself. I’m tired of people looking at me and judging my life choices, yet if a man were to make the same choices, no one would question him. I’m tired of people thinking the reason I’m single is because I’m so damn picky and I should just lower my standards in order to find someone. No bitch.. I shouldn’t lower my standards. People should be aspiring to meet my standards if they want to get with me. I’m an educated woman of color that doesn’t have time to play with little boys. What happened to all the men?

If knowing what I want to aspire in life makes me a bitch, then so be it. If being picky about a potential partner makes me a bitch, then so be it. If calling sexist and racist bullshit out when I see it makes me a bitch, then So. Be. It. If you don’t want to get called out, then don’t say sexist and racist bullshit. It’s as easy as that.

But hey, I’m human too. I’m not always this strong-willed, assertive boss ass bitch all the time. I get caught up in my insecurities too. I find that surrounding yourself with loving and supportive people really helps. Also, listening to dope ass music that encourages you to be a boss ass bitch also really helps.

So moral of the story… ladies, it’s ok to be a bitch. Because a wise woman named Tina Fey once said, “Bitches get stuff done.”

Hey everyone!

So in the recent months, the subject of race and ethnicity have been a hot topic in politics and pop culture. For one, the Trayvon Martin case definitely evoked intense feelings of oppression and injustice in the court system. Now the newest wave of racist gossip comes from last night’s announcement of our new Miss America.

Photo from jezebel.com

If you haven’t already, check out this article from Jezebel that was published today titled, “Racists Are Being Hella Racist Because Miss America Isn’t White.” The article displays some of the vicious tweets from people about the reaction to Miss New York Nina Duvulari winning the title of Miss America. Here are a couple from the article so you can get an idea of what kind of feedback they gave:

1) “How the fuck does a foreigner win Miss America? She is a Arab! #idiots”
-Jake Amick (@Jackamick5)

2) “Miss America? You mean Miss 7-11”
-CHEEZ-IT (@JPLman95)

3) “Don’t you have to be American to win Miss AMERICA? This bitch is some type of Indian.”
-Emily (@emi_adkins)
Soo.. let’s let that sink in for a minute.

The ignorance, stupidity, and maliciousness that consume most of this country just baffles me. I don’t even know where to start with this one. I guess I’ll start with the most obvious one: geography.

Remember in grade school when you were forced to look at a map of the world? And your teacher taught you that all those colorful pieces of land are called continents and within each continent there are different countries? If you weren’t taught this, then I guess I can understand why you’re a fucking idiot. This, my friends, is called the WORLD. The world is made up of many different places. There are countries and within these countries are PEOPLE. Depending on what country you’re in, there are different dialects and customs. It’s called.. um.. LIFE. Yeah. Go read about other people’s lives while you color in your geography worksheet. Remember, North and South America are two continents, k?

It is BEYOND depressing that people who are racist can’t even distinguish who they’re racist about. Like, if you’re gonna hate on someone, at least KNOW who and what you’re hating on. Otherwise, you look like an uneducated idiot. Oh, too late for that. You fucked that up yourself.

In case you don’t know the history of this country, let me give you a quick breakdown. English pilgrims came to this country to live and be free from a monarchy. They IMMIGRATED here. This land was already being inhabited by Native Americans. But because these bad ass pilgrims wanted to conquer the land, they drove the Native Americans out and took over. Cuz they’re bad ass and bad asses get what they want.

So with that being said, WE’RE ALL IMMIGRANTS. So shut the fuck up with that nonsense about getting rid of illegal immigrants, as if you actually OWN America. Miss Nina Duvulari IS American. So are you, and so am I. Just because we don’t have white skin, blonde hair, and blue eyes, doesn’t mean we’re not American. If you were born here, raised here, believe in this country and do your part to be a good citizen, then you belong here.

And don’t sound off about minorities like myself being racist to white people. Oh, jeez, don’t even go there. Minorities like myself who write about these kinds of controversies are just bringing light to the bullshit that’s happening before our eyes. There’s something called “White Privilege.” And if you’re white, you automatically have that. And don’t be all like, “Well it’s not my fault I was born white!”

EXACTLY. Just like it’s not anyone’s fault that they’re homosexual or that they’re black. So for the last time, shut the fuck up with this nonsense.

-Ally