While Jemar Tisby and his supporters go around complaining and raging that a college that he once spoke at repudiated one of his messages for being too progressive and having “divisive racial themes,’ the LGBTQ-affirming, openly pro-choice Vice President of his Black Christian Collective Organization is out slinging racial accusations again, this time suggesting that white folks only like memes with featuring black people because of their white racist impulses.
For context, this is the same woman who advised black women not to enter into interracial relationships with white people, then she said that she’s concerned about the number of black ‘coons’ running for political office, because white people are ‘weaponizing’ them. She also said that white children are racist after observing THIS normal playground behavior. Now, she’s getting more an more extreme, sharing her dark and accusatory thoughts towards white folk who appreciate the viral video and it’s ‘songified’ companion.
I just want to say that I love Tariq, aka the little boy known as ‘corn kid’. He is adorable. His discussion of corn is just so innocent and pure and there’s so many life lessons that you can take from it. So this is no shade on him at all whatsoever.
At the same time, I really struggle with black viral fame. I don’t want to be one of those people that keeps people from enjoying things because I’m looking at it way too deep. But part of me wonders if whenever black people go viral for something, if we’re all sharing it and laughing about it for the same reasons.
And if I’m honest, I don’t think that we’re finding the same thing humorous, especially along racial and cultural lines. And I know that people will jump in the comments about corn kid and be like, ‘Oh, but he’s so cute’ and this and that and the other, and that’s totally true.
But I can’t help but wonder if white people’s impulse to be entertained by black people is behind the virality of corn kid, or for that matter of the ‘Period Ahh Period Uhh; girl who is black fishing. Just some food for thought.
