does my confidence offend you?
A few thoughts on Angel Reese, plus reads & vibes for your weekend.
Happy Friday! Before we kick off the newsletter I’m excited to share that My friend
and I have launched a podcast! Creative Canvas is a weekly show that covers music culture and innovation! We’re excited about it and I hope you’ll check it out now!
Listen to our first episode “Cowboys & Flowers” where we discuss how we met, the reason why we started the pod, and our opinions on Beyonce’s Cowboy Carter. It’s available on Spotify, Spotify For Podcasters (no Spotify account needed, just listen on your browser), and Apple Podcasts. Let us know what you think, and if you enjoy, rate, and subscribe!
Now let’s jump into this week’s update!
The NCAA Final Four tips off tonight, and unlike last year, Angel Reese and the LSU Tigers will be spectating from home.
A year ago, Angel’s dynamic play, NIL bag talk, and outgoing personality catapulted her into the spotlight during the NCAA tournament. She confidently backed up her talk by leading her team to victory over Caitlin Clark and Iowa in the championship game. This matchup became one of the most watched events in sports history. Fast forward to this past Monday's Elite 8 showdown, where 12.3 million viewers tuned in to witness if the reigning champions could fend off the greatest college scorer of all time. Ultimately, they could not, and despite the defeat, Angel Reese displayed remarkable grace. She joined the handshake line, embraced her opponent in congratulations, and exited the court without incident.
Understanding this context is crucial because Angel faced public criticism for her post-game press conference. When asked how she handles the relentless attacks and criticism she's endured, her response was illuminating.
Death threats, AI p0rn, and vile discriminatory comments have no place in sports conversations. They're irrelevant to her performance on the court. While constructive criticism is fair game—I've even critiqued her gameplay myself—it must be based on tangible on-court actions. Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case here.
Instead of fostering a constructive dialogue about her performance or condemning these gross attacks, Fox Sports 1 host Emmanuel Acho chose a different path.
I've been critical of Acho's viewpoints before, but this one takes the cake. Attempting to divorce discussions of race and gender from an issue rooted in racism and sexism is disingenuous at best. Every attack Angel faced was undoubtedly influenced by her identity as both a Black person and a woman.
There's a troubling trend in our society of trying to sanitize conversations by removing mentions of race and gender. However, this only serves to evade accountability for the systemic issues at play. As we discussed last week, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives have become a dog whistle, and the effort to downplay them feels like an evasion of responsibility for the glaring systemic issues at hand.
To make matters worse, comparing a 21-year-old Black woman to a cartoon dog and insinuating she somehow invited non-basketball-related attacks is absurd. Context matters and Acho clearly missed the mark. He brought up her self-identification as a "villain," a label she adopted in response to an LA Times article preceding her Sweet 16 game against UCLA, which depicted her in that light. Angel never sought sympathy; she simply asked to be treated as a human being, which is entirely reasonable. Acho's attempt to dunk on her on a public platform, employing racist undertones, is inexcusable.
He may have thought he ate, but the backlash from the online community has been swift and justified. He’s since expressed gratitude for those who have *respectfully* reprimanded him, but has not apologized.
This situation has reinvigorated a question that I’ve been asking among friends recently. Why is it that confident Black women are often targeted for takedowns? Why does assertiveness provoke such alarm? Whether it's instances like this or the continued growth of harmful online content, there's a troubling trend of radicalization against women, particularly Black women. It's a phenomenon fueled by dark corners of the internet and a quest for attention, with offline consequences that are even more troubling.
I would just appreciate it if we took more care to allow people to embrace their humanity. Can we, for a moment, assume that everyone here is human? Let me know what you think.
New York Times - 4.7 Magnitude Earthquake Rattles New York City and Beyond
+972 Magazine - ‘Lavender’: The AI machine directing Israel’s bombing spree in Gaza
Mississippi Free Press - Mother Could Lose Custody Rights After Police Officer Shot 11-Year-Old Son
HuffPost - Biden Advisers Warn About Team Trump Focus On ‘Anti-White Racism’
Our Tallahassee - Video shows Tallahassee Police Officer Planting Evidence During DUI Arrest
The New Yorker ran a wild story about a middle school in Amherst, Massachusets and the impacts of a hyper-liberal community on Black & Latino teachers and counselors. [Read]
Teen Vogue ran a story about the impact of Cowboy Carter on the legacy of Black artists in country music. [Read more]
NPR spoke to a Little Rock 9 survivor about the legacy of the song Blackbird, and what Beyonce’s cover of the Beatles classic means to her. [Read]
Anne Hathaway is on the cover of the latest Vanity Fair and the accompanying profile is great. She talks about tuning out haters and embracing her true self. [Read]
There’s so much new music today! Here’s some for you to dive into:
New album: Tori Kelly - “Tori” [Spotify | Apple Music]
New album: Bryson Tiller - “Bryson Tiller” [Spotify | Apple Music]
New album: Pharrell Williams - “Black Yacht Rock Vol. 1” [BlackYachtRock.com]
New mixtape: Glorilla - “Ehhthang Ehhthang” [Spotify | Apple Music]
New album: J. Cole - “Might Delete Later” [Spotify | Apple Music]
Speaking of J. Cole, his Dreamville Festival is going down this weekend in North Carolina. The headliners are SZA, 50 Cent, Nicki Minaj and J. Cole himself. You can stream it live tomorrow and Sunday on Twitch and Amazon Prime.
That’s all for this week. I appreciate you! If you enjoyed what you’ve read, consider upping your subscription to PAID! It supports me as a creative and keeps the goodness coming.
