On Dog Power and the Dangers of White Feminists in Film

March 16, 2022 by Pharoah Bolding in Black Girl Magic, White Supremacy, Race in Film/TV, Race in Sports

Beware of the woke white feminist filmmaker. From The Grio:

“Jane Campion is in a bit of hot water after a controversial comment about Serena and Venus Williams at the Critics Choice Awards.

Campion won best director at the 27th annual Critics Choice Awards on Sunday for her Netflix film, The Power of the Dog. During her acceptance speech, she made comments about the legendary tennis players.

At first, Campion seemed to praise the Williams sisters, who were in attendance in support of the film King Richard, a biopic about their father and tennis coach, Richard Williams.

“Venus and Serena, what an honor to be in the room with you,” Campion said. “I’ve taken up tennis. I really have, and when you want to come over and give me lessons, I’d truly love it.”

Then, after acknowledging her fellow nominees as “the guys,” she ended the speech by evoking the Williams sisters again. “Serena and Venus, you are such marvels. However, you do not play against the guys like I have to.”

Campion was making a statement about the competition she faces amongst male directors. She is only the third female filmmaker to win best director at the Critics Choice Awards. She was nominated with Paul Thomas Anderson, Kenneth Branagh, Guillermo del Toro, Steven Spielberg, and Denis Villeneuve, as reported by Newsweek.

However, many viewers felt Campion referring to the Williams sisters during her speech was unnecessary and uncomfortable and expressed those views on social media.”

UGH.

She won a damn award, and she somehow couldn't stop herself from levying out a microaggression and playing a game of oppression Olympics while belittling two of the greatest athletes in world history as her possible future tennis instructors DURING HER ACCEPTANCE SPEECH. Like, who decides to use their acceptance speech at an award show to take shots at Black women?

White people, that's who.

I'm not even shocked. And you shouldn't be either. White women do this kind of thing in workplaces every day, centering themselves and their struggles as more prevalent and important than those of other women and femmes even when they are in the power position. Sure, Campion has had to fight for her space in Hollywood. But like most white women, she was fighting for spaces and opportunities for white women and not for all women. To allude that Venus and Serena have not had to overcome whiteness, white men, in their sport is ludicrous. Take a glance at who runs the international and national governing bodies of tennis. You'll see a sport governed by whiteness and white men. You don't even need to look that hard to see this. Venus and Serena's accomplishments speak for themselves, especially when you place them under the lens of having to fight for space in a white supremacist, patriarchal structure. There's a reason a movie was made about them and their father. Jane Campion throwing shade at Black women via a backhanded compliment shows how threatened she is by their presence and likely the presence of all Black women she comes in contact with.

This ain't no isolated incident, y'all.

This was something she's done before outside of the public eye that tumbled out on stage for all to see.

Campion's speech exemplifies how many white people, white women, view their struggles as more worthy of a platform and applause, even when their whiteness comes with power and privilege that allows them to achieve success with fewer hurdles.

Enjoy your award, Jane.

On Soapboxing, Milk Crating, Racism, and Ukraine

March 01, 2022 by Pharoah Bolding in current events, Equity, Race Talks, White Supremacy

The fact that there are droves of white people up in arms over Black people sending their support to the citizens of Ukraine while calling out the European-flavored racism and white supremacy that is blatantly on display as Black folx are trying to flee an under siege Ukraine clearly says four things about white U.S. Americans.

The Problem with PIPs That Ain't Affiliated with Gladys

February 16, 2022 by Pharoah Bolding in Human Resources, White Supremacy, Equity, Inclusion

There's been a lot of talks recently about performance improvement plans, their effectiveness, and whether or not they meet a legitimate need. The short answer? No. They aren't effective, and they don't meet a legitimate need. But, like most things that are messy and workplace-related, it's much deeper than the short answer.

On Black History Month, Paying Black Folx, and "Exposure"

January 27, 2022 by Pharoah Bolding in Black History Month, Black Lives Matter, Consulting, DEI, Equity, Race Talks, Representation, White Supremacy, Trainings

Hello, white U.S. Americans who organize events and programming for your company or organization. It's that time of year when the air is crisp, winter is well underway, and white "professionals" reach out to Black speakers, consultants, and facilitators to speak at their corporate events as panelists and teachers to "celebrate" Black History Month. You reach out to us to share our stories, pain, and lived and learned experiences with your white organizations during the shortest month of the year, continuing the cycles of melanated pain porn for white consumption that your organizations have trafficked in for decades.

And you're still asking us to do this for little to no compensation.

On Anti-Asian Sentiments, Ingrained Anti-Blackness, Michelle, and Sandra

January 20, 2022 by Pharoah Bolding in White Supremacy, Race Talks, current events, Black Lives Matter, Anti-Asian Hate

We can't talk about the horrific murders of Michelle Allysa Go and Sandra Shells without examining the ugliness at the intersections of the patriarchal white supremacist national sentiments around homelessness and housing insecurity. We also can't talk about what happened to Michelle and Sandra without examining mental health advocacy and the perceived and perpetuated value of Black and Asian women in the United States. And we definitely shouldn't be having conversations about Michelle and Sandra's murders without incorporating an ever-evolving understanding of the deeply ingrained passive acceptance of anti-Blackness and anti-Asian hate that has permeated this country's mindset for hundreds of years.