BY JANIECE CAMPBELL
“The most disrespected person in America is the black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman.”
Whew. Can you believe that these words from Malcolm X’s speech back in 1962 are still significant 58 years later?
Born into a plethora of problems; from unequal pay to a lack of proper care by health-care professionals, will we ever be taken seriously? Let’s talk about just one of the countless amounts of black women that have been discounted at the hands of system; Breonna Taylor.
It’s been over 100 days since her death. On the night of March 13th, Breonna Taylor, a 26-year old emergency medical technician was in bed before police officers entered into her home on a no-knock warrant and shot her at least eight times. The police department claimed that two men that they had been investigating were receiving suspicious packages at Taylor’s address, though nothing was found in her apartment, because officers were at the wrong home. As for the justice served? Well, one officer has been fired while two others have been put on administrative leave. Unfortunately (and unsurprisingly), no criminal charges have been laid for any of the three officers.
An incident that happened in mid-March didn’t gain nationwide attention until two months after. If it wasn’t for social media, this would be yet another case of a black woman to fall on deaf ears. We’ve seen this show before: information about blatant police brutality is posted, #BlackLivesMatter goes viral and everyone momentarily stops in their tracks to fight for injustice against black people. At it’s peak recently, social media has managed to be a strong force in getting charges laid against officers in the cases of George Floyd, Ahmaud Arbery and Rayshard Brooks. The internet is fighting the good fight and changes are being made, isn’t this what we wanted?
Well, as thankful as one can be for the positive effects of social media, there’s something that doesn’t sit right within my spirit. It is genuinely admirable to see the sense of community formed when we all collectively demand justice. However, the way people are garnering attention for Breonna Taylor is quite concerning, as many are utilizing memes as a way of spreading awareness.
Many celebrities, influencers and activists have taken it upon themselves to support the cause by saturating social media feeds with enticing memes for their target audiences. Models may post nearly nude photos of themselves, then shift the focus in the caption to something resembling “Now that I’ve gotten your attention, let’s arrest the cops that killed Breonna Taylor.”
Logging onto Twitter, you may see a tweet like “Drink water. Season your food. Arrest the cops that killed Breonna Taylor.”
The echoing phrase has even been made into Make America Great Again Arrest the Cops who Killed Breonna Taylor hats and t-shirts.
Some may say that this is an effective way of saying her name and keeping it relevant. It’s blunt and calls for action in an eye-catching alternative approach. Isn’t all publicity good publicity anyway?
Well… not really. Especially when black women are already dismissed and forgotten so easily in real life. These obnoxious posts only reveal that the murder of a black woman shows no value to society on or offline. Breonna Taylor’s existence has become a reoccurring corny punchline and it’s infuriating. The implications of this meme may seem harmless, but these memes contribute to performative allyship, where users feel like a simple post is sufficient enough while they disregard the real-life problems and criticisms that black women face. Alongside this surface-level activism, the memes give way for the continuous tradition of using black women for trendy humour. Where’s the joke in a black woman being the victim of a wrongful death while her murderers walk freely?
Before you share one of these posts, think for a moment: do you know the names of the officers who killed Breonna Taylor? How about what the officers look like? I promise, your feed can do without this one quirky meme. Taking the time to apply pressure, write letters and make phone calls to the Attorney General’s office have a lot more weight than a seven-word purposeless tweet. Breonna Taylor, and the numerous unnamed black women deserved way more in life and in death as well.
