I almost didn’t write this week’s Unboxed despite doing it for the last 10 weeks. And then I got reminded today is October 1, the first day of Black History Month. One of three of my favourite times of the year after March (International Women’s Month) and May (Birthday Month).
I feel like every time I write one of these, it gets harder to find the positive news stories. Between random men claiming to be media professionals talking about whether they’d “sh*g” a female journalist to the death of 15-year-old Elianne Andam in Croydon, which I wrote about earlier this week, 2023 really is pushing the world to its limits.
However, my love of Black History Month and inspired by some of my favourite people online this week, I’m celebrating all things Black, for the love of us.
FOR THE LOVE OF JUNGLE FEVER: FORMER BLUE FRONTMAN LEE RYAN FOUND GUILTY OF RACIALLY AGGRAVATED ASSAULT
Okay, this story got worse and worse as I read it. For context, Blue singer, Lee Ryan, was charged and found guilty of racially aggravated assault after beheaving inappropriately on a flight with a Black female member of the cabin crew.
During his altercation with the hostess, he allegedly called her his “chocolate chip cookie” and told her he wanted to “have her chocolate babies”.
Now here’s where I rolled my eyes. These comments are the typical cringy reference made towards Black people. It’s probable Lee has a perchance for Black women – Black people have a radar for it like we knew Harry liked Black women waaaaay before Meghan ever showed up.
On the racial element of his conviction, Lee said: ‘I’m sorry. My band member is Black, I’m not racist, I’ve had Black girlfriends, mixed-race girlfriends. It was banter, just drunk banter I suppose, there was no malice or intention to upset anyone.’
He continued: ‘I didn’t mean to cause any distress to anyone or be racist, it was just a poor choice of words I suppose.’
The singer later said: ‘I am sorry that I touched her, but that’s all I did, touch her lightly, by her admission,’
My first thought was why we’re the only group of people directly associated with food: chocolate, watermelon and dark berries. It seems to be a phenomenon unique to Black people. Honestly, if this was two Black people having this conversation it wouldn’t have landed in the same way and this is where context and over familiarity comes into play.
Black women have been subject to sexualisation for hundreds of years with their autonomy over their bodies disregarded. Lee Ryan overstepped the mark by his entitled behaviour. Also, it’s time we all realise that having Black friends, girlfriends or colleagues needs to be retired as the default go-to when caught behaving inappropriately and does not preclude people from being racist. Sorry to break that one to you.
Initially when I read the headline I put it down to stupid things stupid people say and found it humorous but reflecting on this circumstance justice was served as Lee Ryan overstepped the mark. The cabin member took a massive risk by taking a celebrity to court but was firm in her convictions.
Lee’s focus is primarily on not being seen as racist and almost dismisses the fact that he physically assaulted a woman. Lightly or not the simplest rule in life taught to toddlers is to keep your hands to yourself. Obviously Lee missed class that day. On a side note it is also annoying to see that the fact he’s on the spectrum was used as part of his defence. Please can we stop using things like neurodivergence and mental health a la Huw Edwards as get-out-of-jail-free cards.
FOR THE LOVE OF OUR WELL-BEING: MEG THEE STALLION TALKS MENTAL HEALTH
I love Megan Thee Stallion. She’s fun, genuine and raw. She feels like the type of person you’d want to be your friend. So it’s perfect that she is fronting a campaign for Sieze The Awkward around mental health. Something that is so critically important, especially during a time when things seem particularly unstable.
To have a woman with international reach and the ability to talk to whole swathes of Gen Z’s about mental health. At a time when it feels like the actions of (some) people feel less and less rational and more and more polarised, there’s a need for compassion and an opportunity for more people to talk through some of the traumas of what has happened over the last couple of years.
Historically, as a community, we have been notorious for not speaking because “we don’t chat our business”. However, we need to prioritise our health.
FOR THE LOVE OF WOMEN: CONGRATULATIONS TO FEARLESS FUND
In the Audacity Edition, I wrote about the fact that a venture capital distributor in the US was being taken to court because they were being accused of being discriminatory for only giving Black women capital.
An Atlantan judge has ruled that the plaintiff had no grounds for bringing the case forward. This is excellent news as a different outcome would set a precedent on both sides of the Atlantic.
Black women are severely underfunded. What is missed by the plaintiff is that the money given to Black women would only serve the wider community as they will ultimately contribute to the US economy. Unfortunately, that includes the plaintiff and many of those who think like him. Some people are so focused on stopping the progress of others that they would destroy themselves in the process.
Something like the Fearless Fund doesn’t currently exist in the UK – to my knowledge. This result hopefully bolsters the opportunity and explains its necessity.
FOR THE LOVE OF OUR SISTERS: THE METRO CELEBRATES BLACK BRITISH WOMEN WHO OPEN DOORS
As I was about to put this edition to bed, I came across an article that celebrates Black women who open doors for others. No list could ever be exhaustive and I would love to know how they were chosen but it was a nice reminder of the incredible Black women doing amazing things. My only critique? We need to amplify those women lesser known alongside the usual suspects.
AND ON THAT NOTE…
One woman who could be added to that list is Emma Grede. I only discovered Emma recently and since then she’s been asked to appear on BBC’s Dragon’s Den as a guest investor. This video by Morning Brew and Our Future beautifully breaks down her incredible success.
