Leave Black Girls Bodies Alone

“ when I think about the sexiest man I know...

and imagine him in this outfit....

IT DOESN'T MAKE HIM SEXIER TO ME.

clothes don't have sex appeal... the person does.”

-Theresa Chapple 

We have all seen it. Our black girls lined up for the slaughter that is social media judgement. Participants take a look and drag their outfit, poses, hair, hair color, hair length, bits of exposed skin, hairstyles and the like. People rip them to shreds based on some imaginary list of standards that dictate what's too sexy or grown. This list keeps growing for little girls who dare to be Black and free in this world.

I'm specifying black girls because they are the only victims. While nonblack girls grace the blog pages posted as fashionistas, sassy, beautiful, in their crop tops, poses, and high ponies black girls are demonized.

This sort of trope is as old as time. Ranging from bare shoulders to now too long eyelashes and colored hair. It's something steeped in racism and misogyny with a side of respectability politics. The type of rules that state what you have to adhere to for you to be taken seriously ( as seriously as a woman/girl in a "man's world) to be respected and to be deemed worthy of humanity.

These rules break way for girls and women to be asked "Well, what were you wearing" as eyes stare in and out the court room screaming in silence that they deserved it.

It's time to stop sexualizing little black girl's bodies. Stop giving a piece of fabric so much power. Stop victim blaming parents and little girls for pedophiles being pedophiles. Your standards are your standards but they aren't there for you to force on others to the point they are made to be seen and felt less than. Let black girls be free, take up space, be them, unapologetically even if that looks differently. Burn that fake list of backwood standards that keeps growing for black girls.

Leave Black Girls Bodies ALONE. Period.