Mediocre
Imma let you get back to your victory lap, Joe…but hear me out for a second. I’m going to vote for whoever gets this Dem nom because as a genderqueer black woman raising a black boy and in deep community with BIPOC folx — my life & the lives of those I love most depend on it.
But let’s be honest…
I did my civic duty in this primary. It was amazing to look around the country, my county, and my City and see so many talented women of color candidates, women candidates, and POCs who I could support. But as the Dem party looks to consolidate and everywhere you look you’re hearing that there are only two viable, electable candidates left…I have not stopped being hit by this nagging feeling. I’ve read this story before. My family has starred in this sitcom. I’ve seen my friends play this game and lose. If you’re a woman of color, a woman, a BIPOC person — you know what I’m talking about.
To the [insert basic white man name here…I’ll use Joe] Joes of the world. I’m glad you’re doing better. As we saw yesterday, many believe our nation depends on it. But I hope in the bask and relief of victory you take the smallest, quietest moment to think about something: No woman — don’t even get me started on women of color or queer women of color or trans women of color — could ever be this mediocre leading up to yesterday and wake up this morning as the front runner. I’m not saying your best days aren’t ahead of you and with this renewed energy, momentum, and money you can’t change your narrative this campaign season…you already are…and that’s amazing.
BUT every woman of color, person of color, and woman I have interacted with today has this feeling of knowing about this feeling I’m talking about. Knowing it intimately. We can vividly think of the times we’ve been the best, the most prepared, are putting in that work…and some mediocre white dude comes along fumbling and bumbling and somehow still succeeding.
As a black woman, we know the story too well of putting that mediocre white man on our backs and carrying him until he can get it together and stand on his own. We know that when we do that work, people will minimize it, call us uninformed, dumb, or scared. Shoot, we know they won’t even see us. As I woke up today, I knew that there was likely a vote ahead where I would need to push that nagging feeling aside and forget about the talented people of color, women of color, and women who have done the work this political season and will go unseen, forgotten, belittled, used for pandering or pushed down to hold up a mediocre white man.
I won’t forget.
Again, I want to believe the best days are still ahead for all Dem candidates and will be out there supporting and voting for whoever is nominated. But how many times have BIPOC folx and women of color had a few bad days or performances and just needed people to hold on and believe our best days were ahead? How many times have we needed the white people with power, access, and funding who say they share our values to drop everything to support us and make sure that people give us a second look, don’t write us off because of a few bad days, and put their own interests or feelings aside to make sure we knew they supported us and get us back to the front runner status? Shoot, how often have we been able to count on that without being weighed down with the worry that our few bad days would be counted against everyone that looked like us?
I’m voting Dem come November.
My life depends on it. But I just wanted all BIPOC and women of color to know that the feeling you’re having, that nagging one, the “Oh! I’ve been there, I’ve seen this before.” It’s not in your head. It wasn’t when it happened to you and it isn’t now.
