Some of our most successful black brothers and sisters are products of the “get it out the mud” mentality. The black community has looked up to black individuals who had to declare that they would be a voice to be reckoned with in this world. Who had to declare that their name would be tied to a great deal of wealth, when they grew up without a cent. Who had to deal, kill, and steal in the same communities they would later pour money and resources back into once they’ve made it out. We welcome them back with open arms, each and every time not only because we’re proud of the wealth, but because we’re proud to see our own people with whom we’ve shared blocks, churches, and schools with, making it big.
I’d like to believe that our ancestors would doze away at night dreaming of seeing black minds free to wonder. Free enough to even dream of being doctors or lawyers, singers or entrepreneurs. Free at all for that matter or free at last. Free enough to even conceive of the idea that we as black people can be a part of the conversation and win when it comes to success by the terms of THIS world.
The “get it out the mud” mentality is strong and beautiful however, there is a beauty within nepotism. Contrary to what some believe, not everyone is given the same 24 hours a day. Some are dealt either a good or bad hand, or an even better or even worse hand. The idea that black people must endure a great deal of hardship or struggle before being able to reap the benefits of their hard work is limiting to the mind and the body.
Non-black people have exhausted their nepotism within the workplace and have proclaimed it to the world proudly. In 2020, Saweetie killed rumors of getting any handouts from her famously successful cousin Gabrielle Union. The Icy Girl stated, “But me, I have so much pride. I believe in being self-made and trying to figure things out on my own”…which is undoubtedly admirable. But why? Why do black people shy away from a helping hand? Why do we fail to accept the resources that are divine to us? As we are fighting for a seat at the table, we are being overlooked and dismissed for non-black people who are often unqualified and unmotivated because an opportunity was handed to them. We fail to realize that the work speaks for itself.
Nepotism within the black community is beautiful. To see individuals– our brothers and sisters dominating in successful places to the point where they are able to extend an opportunity to another is something that is divine within itself. Respect to those who had to get it out the mud, so that we did not have to.