Oprah

Source: Fashion Bomb Daily

Most recently, there has been quite a stir about the particular fashionable taste of fashion designer Peggy Noland. One of her graphic dresses displays a life-size image of what appears to be an unknown, and unclothed, Afrikan American female with a photo-shopped image of Oprah’s face in exchange. There are multiple images of women and even one with an image of a KISS member photos-shopped as the head of the body.

Looks familiar doesn’t it? I’m sure UCLA students are quite familiar with similar occurrences happening against the Dr. Christian Head versus UC Regents, where Professor Head was mocked in a class presentation and his head cropped onto an image of a kneeling gorilla. Only this time, they done went and tried to play Oprah! Stirring questions about the dress itself have assessed many critical debates and disagreements.

In fact, in XOjane.com, Black writer Veronica Miller expressed her outrage with the dress and shared her disapproval. Miller writes:

“‘Progressive’ White women, you need to quit. This thing that you keep doing, exploring your own issues with repressed sexuality and body image through the use of Black women who didn’t give you permission to be self-image surrogates? [It] needs to stop, and it needs to come to an end now. Not now, but RIGHT now. We are not playgrounds where you get to explore your issues. You don’t get to use our bodies as the shield behind which you throw up your middle finger up at patriarchy. These stunts make you no better than patriarchs, no better than misogynists. You take our bodies apart and display them in pieces the same exact way you admonish advertising, fashion and music for doing. That is hypocritical behavior and hypocritical behavior is tired.”

Peggy Noland wearing her “design”/ Source: Fashion Bomb Daily

Miller’s disapproval cannot be dismissed as illogical. In fact, it is quite common for members of the Afrikan American community to share experiences dealing with being ostracized or feeling singled out for their physical features. Fashionbombdaily.com stated, “Black women have dealt with the misappropriation and exploitation of their bodies by others since Saartjie Baartman first stepped onto European soil in the 19th century. It’s 2013—you’d hope people would know better by now. Sadly, they don’t.”

And just when you thought it couldn’t get worst.

Lena Adelsohn Liljeroth, Sweden’s Minister of Culture and Sports, was video-recorded laughing and smiling as she posed with other coworkers in front of the cake of an Afrikan woman. (See it for yourself: www.youtube.com/watch?v=etAYFadObVY)

Now this was not just any ordinary cake. In fact, Black artist Makode Aj Linde who designed the cake described the pastry dessert as a ‘genital mutilation cake.’ Linde designed the cake to make screaming, painful noises as it was being sliced into. As people sliced into the “woman’s vagina”, the depiction behind it suggest she was being “mutilated.”

In the video, the people who are indulging in the cake are seen standing around laughing in enjoyment and making a mockery of the Black bodied cake.

Is there a thin line between what is appropriately considered creative and ill bred? How much more do Black women have to overcome in order to be viewed as whole beings and not as human spectacles? How far is too far and where can we as a community begin to send waves and break barriers in order to correct these problematic issues found in the Afrikan-American community?

Raise your voice in the comment box below!

Author: Ashley Joseph

Nommo Staff

US President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama chat with talk show host Oprah Winfrey in 2011. Winfrey told BBC that racism is still a problem/ MANDEL NGAN/AFP/GETTY IMAGES

In the weeks leading up to the inauguration of President Barak Obama in 2008, there was an ominous suspicion lurking around America. Many Americans waited in anxious anticipation, bearing in mind the extreme lengths to which white bigots once traveled to keep blacks from voting, wondering if the racist ghost of America’s past would surface to remind us how close 2008 is to 1960.

To the surprise of many, the event went relatively smooth: there were no assassinations attempts, no Klu Klux Klaners picketing the white house, or any such protests.

Was the suspicion unnecessary paranoia? Has the election and reelection of an AfriKan American proved that racism’s career in the US has joined the “free love” moment and bell-bottoms as antiques of the American past?

Oprah Winfrey, a supporter of President Obama, thinks not. In an interview with the BBC news, Winfrey said, “I think there is a level of disrespect for the office and that occurs, in many cases…because he’s Afrikan American.”

Winfrey’s comments have ignited debate around the country, with one side viewing her comments as divisive race bating, and others seeing it as “telling it like it is”.

“The majority in the house are republican…they tend to try to make him look bad, and try to make him look like he’s doing a bad job. I think they’re doing it because of his race,” said Omar Hassan, a Philosophy major at UCLA. Omar’s comments mirror the ideas of many students who believe Obama’s opposition is racially motivated, such as Erin An, also a Philosophy major at UCLA who said, “If you look at the Tea party, they’ve had some very interesting things to say about Obama. So yea, I think in general, a lot of Obama’s opposition is because of race.”

Others feel that the election and reelection of an Afrikan American to the oval office has more to say about America’s progress than is being acknowledged. “I don’t think Obama’s opposition is because of race, I think it’s because of policy. If you look at the things he supports, like abortion or Obama-care, a lot of people disagree with these policies… so that’s why they oppose him,” said Krislam Junsay, a Global Studies and Philosophy major at UCLA. He went on to say, “I’m not saying that there is no racism, because there is…but we are moving forward.”

The notion that the United States has racially progressed seems to be a social axiom. As Oprah stated, “It would be foolish to not recognize that we have evolved, and that we’re not still facing the same kind of terrorism against black people on mass.” The degree to which we have evolved, however, is up for discussion.

“Racism is there, it isn’t as blatant as it was before…but it’s more subtle,” said Sam Rountree, a Philosophy and Public Policy double major at UCLA. Rountree’s comment expresses the beliefs of many people that don’t see progress as solvency.

Notwithstanding the disagreements about the degree to which America is getting past racism, nearly everyone seems ambivalent about the ability to put it in the past. “With the America we have now, it’s not possible,” said Rountree. He added, “We can’t stop people from being racist, but we can stop how it’s institutionalized.”

When asked if the Americans can get past racism, Hassan responded, “Well, we got to start small, and take it one step at a time. But it probably isn’t possible because we’ve grown up learning stereotypes and racist jokes that keep it alive… so we gotta start small with each generation if we want it to stop.”

Junsay, the Philosophy and Global Studies student said, “Racism is still a big problem, and we should acknowledge that. But, I think the percentages of people who dislike Obama, because he’s black, are in the minority. So we’re moving forward.”

Between 39 to 54 percent of Americans disapprove of how the President is doing his job according to new Quinnipiac University poll, making Obama’s approval among voters lower than it has ever been for any other president. Rather this spike in his popularity is because of the color of his skin, or because of the content of his policies, this issue maybe debated for a long time.

Author: Michael Holmes, Jr.

Nommo Staff

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