Following Will Smith’s incident at the Oscar’s, a meme was floating around stating that the altercation is a prime example of what protecting black women entails. In his acceptance speech shortly thereafter, Will Smith himself shared his view of what he feels is his calling or purpose in life…protecting those that he loves. While I LOVE seeing a black man defend his wife when she’s been publicly disrespected, I have to disagree with the notion that this is what is truly meant by “protect black women”; however, it does apply to it. Will Smith protected Jada because he is a husband above all else including being an Academy award winning actor. We have no prior knowledge of what he and Jada dealt with behind closed doors concerning her having alopecia. For any woman I assume it’s absolutely devastating. Therefore, his reaction is a direct result of his duties as a husband to protect his spouse and nothing more than that. “Protecting black women” is much deeper than the reaction we all saw. The Oscar’s played a key part in what occurred. Perhaps we should shift focus to the writer of the tasteless joke. It was not about the actual joke because there was no humor to it at all. It was the fact that they deemed it acceptable to comment on a black woman’s appearance without regard of the condition behind it or her feelings alone. A woman cutting her hair is known to be a powerful and brave statement but was used in this context with ill will. Ultimately, it was degrading and humiliating. There was no reason to bring attention to it at all unless it was to uplift her and clearly it wasn’t. What’s even more disappointing is that the joke was orchestrated to be told by a black man and he actually carried it out without any regard. “Protecting black women” begins with learning to protect one another within our race when others attempt to pin us against each other. Respect for our own alone could have avoided the situation all together.
Jada being disrespected at what was thought to be the most prestigious film award show in the world is one miniscule example of what black women face daily in this nation. Whenever I think of what “Protect Black Women” means, I think of Sandra Bland and Breonna Taylor. I think of Cory Brooker telling Ketanji Brown Jackson, that she is worthy and a “harbinger of hope” in a room where she was questioned of her humanity by racist politicians. I think of the countless black women we celebrated during this Women’s History Month who accomplished the inevitable and unimaginable. Whenever I think about what black women have endure in this nation, I think of Malcolm X’s speech in 1962 when he stated “The most disrespected person in America is the black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the black woman. The most neglected person in America is the black woman.” To “protect black women” means to actively stand with us and against those who seek to humiliate, ridicule, wound, undermine, and abuse us.