Earlier this week, a PR person reached out to me about a new social app that incorporates live audio chat, as well as pictures, video and links. And guess what? They have an African American portal! Here’s a line from the pitch: “It’s become more and more clear in the past year or so that the African American community faces a lot of significant issues. The best way to overcome these issues is to have meaningful discussions.” Okay…
It ended with an offer to make the CEO available for an interview. Would I be interested? No. First, I tend not to interview random tech CEOs because that’s not really my focus. But one look at the leadership team and it’s clear there’s not a single Black person involved. It’s 2021, and this kind of thing is problematic. Black people bring cultural credibility to platforms, but rarely do they participate as equity partners or get to build direct relationships with the venture capitalists who fund tech startups. Neither do they get paid or fully recognized for the cachet they give these platforms. So, no, I’m not chatting up the app or talking to their CEO. I told the PR person as much.
On TikTok, Black creators are saying no, too. Recently, a whole cadre of Black choreographers on TikTok went on strike and refused to put out any dances to the new Megan Thee Stallion song “Thot Shit” to make a point about cultural appropriation. They’ve created the best dances to the hottest songs, but rarely get the credit and financial rewards as a result of their innovations. The acclaim, along with profitable brand sponsorships, typically went to white dancers who copied them, and then got national platforms to do anemic versions for the world to see. Remember Addison Rae Easterling on Jimmy Fallon? Rather than put out dances to Megan’s new song, the Black choreographers are letting white dancers try their hand at originating dances. Tech site Mashable calls these creations “bleak”.
Not only is “no” a complete sentence, but it’s a powerful way to begin shifting power imbalances. Most of these social platforms–think Twitter, TikTok and, recently, Clubhouse–wouldn’t have gotten off the ground if it weren’t for Black cool. The choreographers’ move on TikTok underscores the point that global culture doesn’t move without Black culture. I expect we’ll see more examples of folks being more thoughtful about what they co-sign, both broadly and within our interpersonal exchanges. Done properly, a well-placed “no” is a clear statement to folks on the other side of the table that you don’t approve of what they doing or how they’re doing things. And, at some point, things start to shift for the better.
Shout out to Dance Theatre of Harlem’s Robert Garland for the heads up.
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