I was really invested in this week’s reading because I’ve been hearing the term “misogynoir” quite often now. I guess I kinda understood it in theory, just by looking at the treatment of black women in our society. Watching Ketanji Jackson’s nomination hearing and comparing it with Brett Kavanaugh’s is all the proof we need. If this is how it is at the top, we can only imagine how it is for regular folks. Reading The Combahee River Collective Statement helped me look at things from a wider perspective, in terms of the intersectionality between the different oppressions black women have to navigate. It is evident to me that black women being free would mean all of us are free.

The film Paris is Burning was equally intriguing. I have always been amazed by the ballroom scene and Voguing. Seeing how it came to be, and how it’s a safe haven for so many young kids was wholesome. The whole concept of “mother” was very heartwarming. The other thing that got me thinking was how so many of the words and phrases used on the internet, came from these scenes. “Slay”, “Serve”, Face”, “Reading”, “Shade”, “Tea” were all created in The Balls. There has been much discourse on how they don’t get the credit they deserve, and have been appropriated by mainstream idea, especially white heterosexual women. I guess this is where identity politics comes to play, and shows how just because you are a part of an oppressed group doesn’t necessarily mean you’d fight against others’ oppression.