I am usually a person who likes to stay in the background of controversial movements and situations so as not to rock the boat. I can be extremely passionate about the things that matter most to me and hit close to home so I don't put myself in situations to have heated debates with those around me regarding these topics. However, I have witnessed so much ignorance and disrespect surrounding Beyonce's SuperBowl 50 performance that I refuse to bite my tongue any longer.
From my understanding, people are upset that she used her time during the highly anticipated halftime show to relay a message. I have watched it multiple times and still do not know what these people are talking about. Her performance simply celebrated being black. All of her dancers had natural hair and were dressed to represent members of the Black Panther Movement. Beyonce was the head honcho in garments with a similar design as one worn by the late Michael Jackson. The "formation" of her dancers resembled a letter X to pay homage to the late Malcolm X. She then went on to join Coldplay and Bruno Mars on stage for a collaboration where they celebrated 50 years of the Super Bowl and being American. Nowhere in her kickass dance moves and miraculous save from a fall did I see Beyonce disrespecting police and claiming that she was anti-white. Instead, I saw a celebrity who has been out of the conversation far too long show the world that she is indeed Pro-Black. And God forbid that she does it during Black History Month!
The main thing that people are taking offense to is her tribute to the Black Panther Movement. It really is funny to me how blacks in this country are continuously being gunned down by police and mysteriously found dead in jail cells and I didn't hear nearly as much outrage by the white community than we are hearing over a 15-minute halftime show. What makes it even worse is that people are misinformed about the Black Panthers and refusing to acknowledge that if the Ku Klux Klan, segregation, slavery, racism, genocide, lynchings, and everything else didn't exist the Black Panthers wouldn't even have had a reason to form! A group of blacks created an organization to offer protection of their families from racists who had all of the power to kill them and get away with it. However, like a very well-written blog post mentioned, we only remember them for their guns.
In regards to the song "Formation" that is also receiving a lot of backlash, again, I do not think that Beyonce is doing anything wrong. Even in her video where she is seen laying on top of a police car and using her weight to sink it into water. Yes, this is sending a strong message but as we all know Beyonce and the rest of us depend on police officers for our continued safety. However, there are a few bad apples in the bunch that are tarnishing the reputations of a lot of law enforcement officers and if you take offense to the images in the video then maybe you are one of them.
I hate to be this harsh but as a woman who is finally seeing accurate depictions of people who look like me being proud on national television for looking like me, it saddens me to know so many people dislike it. There are a lot of things going on in this world that we could focus our attention on. If everyone spent half as much time finding solutions to the intolerance this country is becoming known for instead of criticizing those of us who are infected by this intolerance, the world would be a much better place.
Since when has it become an act of racism against whites to show you are proud to be black? I think to be proud of being black is an accomplishment in today's time. So many people are ashamed of their brown skin because they feel it makes them an instant target. Not necessarily a shooting target, but a target for stereotypes such as "ghetto," "ignorant" or "ratchet." These stigmas follow us around whether you, in your privileged little bubble, realize it or not. So I am here to say I am proud to be black and that does not mean that I hate you for being white.
