"Black women are often treated like children who are expected to be seen but not heard. It's ironic that they're silenced, yet criticized for not speaking up sooner. When we finally find the courage to share our pain, they question its validity and ask why we put ourselves in harm's way. They dismiss our trauma, telling us to 'get over it' and 'move on' without acknowledging the triggers that still haunt us.
When we name our abusers, they blame us for not choosing better partners, perpetuating harmful stereotypes like 'boys will be boys' and 'women lie.' Meanwhile, black women are expected to protect and support our men, only to be betrayed and ignored when we need help ourselves. We're conditioned to prioritize others' wounds over our own, just as we were taught to put others first.
Our credibility is constantly questioned, with our worth tied to our bodies and sexual experiences. We're shamed for our sexuality, with phrases like 'fast women' and 'asking for it' perpetuating harmful stereotypes. The bigger the 'hook,' the bigger the hole - or perhaps the bigger the hole, the bigger the barrier to justice and equality."
About the Creator
Ken Clepper
Versatile wordsmith and history buff: poet, author, essayist, and enthusiast of the past."
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Mindfulness
"Before me lies a new path, with love, family, and lessons learned from failures. For the first time, I'm at peace, eagerly anticipating each new day. I rise with purpose, cherishing time with my children. Shame, once a constant companion, now feels foreign. Though I have less than before, my heart beats with a newfound understanding.
By Ken Clepper about a month ago in Poets
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Travel changes us — if we let its lessons in. It’s possible to wander the world, even to take pictures, with our eyes as good as closed, never opening to the new self that a new place might make of us. So many of the entries to our Travel Snaps challenge were by creators who really wanted to look at the world, and themselves, anew. They were all inspiring to read — and to see, because photography was an important part of this competition. To us, the ‘quality’ of the photographs wasn’t the point; it was that these images were yours. It was a reminder of how much more that can mean — certainly when it comes to personal essays — than widely available or AI images. We really loved seeing these snaps.
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