So, in case you haven't heard, some compromising celebrity photos have been leaked to the general public. Some people somewhere hacked into the Apple iCloud system, targeted celebrity accounts, and leaked pictures of people like Jennifer Lawrence, Kirsten Dunst, and other celebrities who have no immediate bearing on my life. Of course, I read about it on Forbes and on Facebook, didn't care, and commenced to scroll through cute baby pictures and family photos. I was done with that mess.
What made me stop and really pay attention was when Jill Scott's name got mentioned in this whole fiasco. One of my friends posted this article to their Facebook page and I almost fell out my seat and died! I mean, I love Jilly from Philly. I was introduced to her spoken word by a friend and immediately fell in love with her music afterward. Very rarely do we hear bad press about her. She's graceful, classy, sweet, and sassy. I just love her to pieces. And she was on of the celebrities who's privacy was compromised during this whole picture leak situation.
Now notice how Jill Scott's name is not mentioned in the Forbes article that I linked above. Now of course, putting that nudies of Jill Scott got spread like wild fire is not going to sell papers or get more readers on a website like Forbes. Maybe in the Black neighborhoods, but certainly not on Wall Street or corporate America. At the very least, it will create some type of diversity in the article. And we all know how everyone is trying to be politically correct and culturally diverse these days. If you don't know, you better ask somebody!
But anyway, let me get to the point. Why am I talking about this in relation to Black Female Sexuality? Because my dear people, the reaction to Jennifer Lawrence's photos and the reaction to Jill's photos were EXTREMELY DIFFERENT!! The undertone of most articles relating to Jennifer Lawrence and the photo leaking scandal has made J. Law seem like a victim. The big bad wolf blew her house down, leaked her naked photos, and exposed her beautiful body to the entire world. It was an outrage. It was despicable. It was just sad.
But Jilly? There was a bunch of fat shaming. Some of the "that's what you get" kind of talk. I mean, the insults started pouring in. And the thing is, one photo that was leaked was of Jill in a robe recording her weight loss journey. And she has really slimmed down a lot. The other, which is a topless photo, Jill claims is not even her! Now in fairness, the other celebrities have experienced the same back lash. But most of the articles about Jill and this situation have to deal with how harsh the comments and the feedback about her photos have been. I mean, people are MEAN! But these comments are evidence to something much deeper. They are evidence that Black Female Bodies are not viewed in the same way as their white counterparts. And that's where I have the issue.
Of course, we all know that women of all races are objectified and in most cases, still viewed as commodities. But think about this. How would you feel about Jennifer Lawrence or Katy Perry on a Times Square billboard modeling Hanes underwear. Now how would you feel about someone like one of the female cast members from Think Like A Man 2 modeling those same underwear? I'm talking about Meagan Good, Regina Hall, Taraji P. Henson, or Gabrielle Union. Hell, let's not even talk about if you saw Nicki Minaj on that billboard modeling some Hanes underwear. Girl, there would be a first class riot up in that peace! So you get my point. Totally different reactions to the same billboard trying to sell the same product. Only difference is race and body construct. But this makes all the difference in the world.
What I think needs to happen is we as Black Women start to take ownership of our sexuality. For real. Let us take back our bodies and not be ashamed of them but refuse to let them be over sexualized and degraded. Period. There will be no apologies for our hips, our curves, or our round behinds. I cannot help that I fill out a pencil skirt to perfection. I cannot stop my booty from jiggling in a sun dress. I have no apologies that skater skirts and dresses are not as innocent on me as they are with those who have less behind. It's my body. I love it. And I will not let anyone make me feel ashamed of it. Or let anyone tell me that things that are deemed appropriate for one person in the workplace or not appropriate for me. If we are ashamed, we give them power. And quite frankly, we've given men and society the power long enough. Time to take it back now.
On another note, I do not judge anyone tho decides to participate in sexting or sending nudies. Again, that is your choice, I really hate that everything that is private and sexual is made to seem dirty or shameful. Yet, if a woman is pretending to have an orgasm in the shower in a shampoo commercial, than that's just advertisement. What I do have to say is this. Practice this behavior wisely. Make sure that you share photos with someone that you trust and have known for a long period of time. And have an understanding that once you hit sent on that picture or video, anything can happen to it. Literally. There are plenty of websites that expose exes or put people on blast based on their sexual activities and preferences. Beware. And trust your gut. If it doesn't feel right, don't do it. No matter what kind of pressure you're under.
Okay beauties, let's wrap this up. Jill Scott. I love you to pieces!! I also love the way that you handled this entire situation. If you are not aware how Jilly from Philly dealt with her haters, you can see her actual response here. It was classy, it was graceful, it was empowering while others were trying to tear her down. I wanted to raise a fist after reading it! She owned her body, made it clear that she was not ashamed of who she was or how she looked and shut everything down. Well done! But think about this. In his article about Jill and the photos, Jerry Barrow made the statement that Jill's privacy is our privacy. I would go even further to say that Jill's pride is our pride. No shame here. No hiding here. And no acceptance of hate, belittling, fat shaming, or degradation here. And once we make this the standard everywhere, the way Black Women, Black Bodies, and Black Sexuality is viewed will begin to change. You just watch.
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