The Question of Culture & Identity
The question "who am i?" has come up many times in the lives of many individuals. Being a black person, especially, comes with a lot of questions as to your cultural identity. If you ask a non-African black person if they consider themselves an African, more likely than not, the answer will be no. Lots of historians have created this ideal of Africa as the homeland of Blackness and that all black persons are in essence Africans. However, I would not go around calling myself an African or proclaiming the continent my home. Of course i recognize my African background, but i am not African. I was not born there, I cannot speak the language, and I cannot identify with many aspects of African culture. I am simply i person of African descent who also happens to be a mixture of other ethnic groups as well. I have a bit of Indian, some Portuguese, some African, and a bunch of other mix ups which is to be expected as a person coming from the Caribbean. Being black goes beyond Africa and Africa is not home to solely black individuals. In saying that i am not African, i am not denying my forefathers and i am not denying the slave background which resonates with being a native of the Caribbean. I am simply saying that there is more to me than Africa and defining myself as a person, i have to consider all the other aspects and elements that make me unique. I am a unique blend of various cultures and peoples packaged into an individual known as Annetta. I no longer identify myself as an Antiguan, because my identity is broader than that. I am a Caribbean girl, which encompasses all the unique elements that are found in the Caribbean and relate the unique elements that are found in me. Gaining an understanding of Africa is great, because that is where it all started... but that is just it, Africa is only the start. Many other things came in along the road and we shouldn't let generalizations define us. Why are people African Americans or Afro-Caribbean and not European- Americans. It is simply to remind us of our negative past, but we need to look beyond our past and stop using it to identify our selves. We must chose a path of progression or else we become nothing else but our history and we should not let this happen as a person is more than just their past.
OJO AGI
The internet is a very interesting place. You are exposed to a world of possibility and creativity and you are made aware of so many different things. It was through the glorious mechanism that is the internet that I came across the talented OJO AGI. She is an amazing artist who creates afro centric portraits and shows the beauty of every day women. She declares her self the creator of feminist pieces and takes quite a deal of time to ensure that her pieces are nothing less than perfection. Her pieces are inspirational and i enjoy her creative output.
Mona Fall 2014
Food For Thought: The Problem With Weight
It irks me every time a person comments on a photograph of a slim person and says that they need a cheeseburger, or on the photograph of a thick girl and calls her a cow... it truly irks me. Weight on both ends of the spectrum is a serious problem in society. The only reason that a problem with self esteem, self perception, and weight problems exist is because society keeps attacking people who they think have a problem. Generalization is not going to help the problem. All slender people are not anorexic and all heavy set individuals are not comfort eating. You would never have known that there was a problem with your weight until someone pointed it out to you. Society constantly victimizes individuals on both sides of the spectrum. This behaviour has not only produced self hate but hatred among the people being singled out. Fluffy girls who dislike slim girls single them out call them toothpicks and twigs, and slim girls ridicule fluffy women and label them cows. How is this healthy for society? As i person on the lighter side of the scale, i have had my fair share of problems. My mother (who i don't live with) has constantly asked me where my food goes to... she tells her friends that i don't eat food which is why i "blow in the wind". Bear in mind that i don't live with her so she has no idea of my eating habits and is judging me based on an assumption. I happen to eat a lot of food but my high metabolism is what hinders me from keeping on any significant pounds... We shouldn't do this to our girls. They are beautiful no matter what size they are. What if society just ignored weight and stopped objectifying women on a whole. Do you know how much better the world would be? The media and the male ideal for women has greatly influenced our view of women. When men preferred that women be skinny, women forced themselves into corsets to please them.. now men prefer curves and ass and women are killing themselves to squat and get plastic surgery & injections. Why can't we just be accepted for who we are as individuals and not what we look like? Being skinny is not a problem, anorexia is, and it so happens to be a side effect of the negative mindset of society. And you cannot alleviate the problem you created by calling all skinny girls anorexic and saying eat more food... that only makes things a lot worse. Weighing more than 140lbs is not a problem... plus size is not a problem. telling a plus sized woman to eat a salad will not suddenly make plus sized women go away. It creates a bigger problem and society is hypocritical for doing this. Society created anorexia and obesity. All i have to say is love the skin you're in.
Adventurers
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Today was a day that was filled with adventure! I was invited by my best friend to spend the day with him, and we ended up hiking to one of my favorite spots. I am an avid lover of exploration & nature, so all in all, i can say that i had a wonderful day, as it was filled by these things. We spent the afternoon making video montages, taking photographs, and covering new ground. A little modeling even took place on our expedition. I enjoyed spending time with my best friend as we hadn't hung out in quite a while. I was really glad to spend some time with the people i cared about in places that make me happier than most.