I stayed up too late watching the Grammys.
My young daughters, ages 8 and 10, joined me for the first forty minutes, before I sent them up to bed. Their father, a musician and producer, was working late and missed the show. So we filled him in on the highlights at breakfast.
The thing we ranted most about was Beyoncé's butt.
My 8-year-old daughter made many hilarious comments during Beyonce's nearly-naked performance, like "Help! I'm scared of Beyoncé's butt! Make it go away!!" Her older sister just grumbled, saying things like, "Why is she hanging out of her costume like that? Ew!" We agreed that her song was dumb, and her performance was "so inappropriate!!"
We're not huge Beyoncé fans, but we don't dislike her either.
We admire her talent and her obvious beauty. So we have to ask: Why does she choose to do a soft-porn chair dance in a thong/push-up bra/stilettos/fishnets Hookerlady outfit at 8pm on network television? I had to explain to my girls that "that man" who joined her on stage was her husband, Jay-Z, eyes averted in a disconnected way even though he had a hand on her almost-bare booty. Where was his costume? No thong. No pimp hat. Nothing but a designer tux, while his wife is dressed like a lite bondage bimbo.
I sound old and conservative.
But the image of a gorgeous, almost naked black woman sexing it up for the camera, accompanied by her black husband who seems to hardly notice or care that she's spreading it for an international audience of millions, is a rotten scene from the degrading annals of pop culture and I am SO DISAPPOINTED in Beyoncé and Jay-Z, parents of a two-year-old baby girl. OK, I brought race into it. It's not just a feminist issue. It's a pride and respect issue for all women, including the sexualized black women of the world.
Shame on CBS and the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences for pushing the "marriage equality" segment into the after-11PM slot, while featuring Beyonce's butt at the top of family-friendly prime time. They got that one backwards.
The real highlight of the show was seventeen-year-old Lorde, in her loose black man-pants and twitchy dance, singing about the weirdness of celebrity. A weirdness she'll have to work with(in), as her two Grammy awards attest. And it was good to see Nile Rogers kicking it live, even in support of a couple of French disco robots.
Monday, January 27, 2014
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
Hits of 2013
I know I'm a little late for the glut of Year End posts. But I have been putting a lot of good writing energy into my manuscript, like the good girl I promised to be. You haven't heard much from me lately, right?
While it's still January, I'm tossing my two cents into the pool with this short little list of Hits of 2013.
Mayor Bill DeBlasio of New York City, my hometown. Finally a lefty activist/democrat running the most radical city on Earth. His mixed-race family, and Afro-centric-hairstyled offspring knock me out. Can't wait to see what the future brings.
Key and Peele. Comedy Central's amazing show featuring two (count 'em, two) biracial comedians who dare to say a whole lot of messed up funny stuff that a lot of people wouldn't dream of repeating in mixed (pun intended) company.
12 Years A Slave. The book by Solomon Northup. I am mid-way through it and am blown away by the beautiful language and remarkable story of this 19th Century memoir. Wondering why it took a black Brit to make the film everyone's talking about. Cheers to Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and everyone who helped bring the book into the light.
Mama's Child. A new book by Joan Lester, YA author and journalist. An interesting work of fiction, this story of a modern bi-racial family is told from two perspectives: the white mother's voice alternates with that of her mixed daughter. Ms. Lester is herself a white mother in a mixed race family, bringing her authentic perspective to this unusual tale.
Southern Poverty Law Center. This non-profit organization has made incredible strides in fighting bias-based injustices here in the US. I've been a supporter for years, and thought I'd take this opportunity to send a shout-out. Visit http://www.splcenter.org to explore or donate.
Lastly, I have to mention that my mom survived a harrowing health scare in December. By New Year's Eve she was feeling pretty darn good. So Mom's healthy outlook makes it to my Hit list. Hooray!
Wishing you a peaceful and joy-filled new year.
While it's still January, I'm tossing my two cents into the pool with this short little list of Hits of 2013.
| photo: nydailynews.com |
| photo: hollywoodreporter.com |
Key and Peele. Comedy Central's amazing show featuring two (count 'em, two) biracial comedians who dare to say a whole lot of messed up funny stuff that a lot of people wouldn't dream of repeating in mixed (pun intended) company.
12 Years A Slave. The book by Solomon Northup. I am mid-way through it and am blown away by the beautiful language and remarkable story of this 19th Century memoir. Wondering why it took a black Brit to make the film everyone's talking about. Cheers to Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and everyone who helped bring the book into the light.
Mama's Child. A new book by Joan Lester, YA author and journalist. An interesting work of fiction, this story of a modern bi-racial family is told from two perspectives: the white mother's voice alternates with that of her mixed daughter. Ms. Lester is herself a white mother in a mixed race family, bringing her authentic perspective to this unusual tale.
Southern Poverty Law Center. This non-profit organization has made incredible strides in fighting bias-based injustices here in the US. I've been a supporter for years, and thought I'd take this opportunity to send a shout-out. Visit http://www.splcenter.org to explore or donate.
Lastly, I have to mention that my mom survived a harrowing health scare in December. By New Year's Eve she was feeling pretty darn good. So Mom's healthy outlook makes it to my Hit list. Hooray!
Wishing you a peaceful and joy-filled new year.
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