Amber Rose is Doing the SlutWalk All Wrong

Onyx Contributor:  Asher Primus

It is honestly crazy that Amber Rose is a feminist, but then again the term is just a trendy ideology that everyone wants to be, yet do not know how to practice without offending anyone.  Amber Rose and Black Chyna tried to take back slut-shaming slurs in 2015 with their own version of a slut walk.  Even as a feminist, Rose received backlash for tarnishing the brand of feminism.  She does not seem to be good at being on, especially with her early controversies in 2017; one incident occurred when she hung up on a caller who claims to have been molested by a family member and another for excluding bisexual men from her dating pool.  Yet, Rose’s annual slut walk may be her only redeemable gesture to win back in favor of the SJW community.

Her slutwalk will be in LA on October 1^st and does not just cater to black women, rather it is an all-inclusive movement for women and LGBT members of all races to create change.  But is it really making a difference?  Thot, ho, bitch and slut are still used in our vocabulary and for some women it is a badge of honor.  The purpose of these events is to help women cope with the stigmas of slut-shaming and rape.  These women want to live in a world where there is not any sexual violence, victim blaming, derogatory labels and gender inequality; yes, it is an unrealistic vision even in Trump’s Presidency.

The slut walk ends up being another useless women’s march that pulls on the heart strings.  The goals are nice and all, but let us be even more honest, some (or most) women already like how things are especially with Trump winning the majority vote from white women.  For starters, we know white feminists are silent for most issues affecting black girls, for example the ban on natural hair in private institutions.  Even in sexual violence, white feminists are ignored and left in the cold.  Cherelle Locklear became a statistic of another college girl who was taken advantage of by a fraternity when William Paterson University neglected her case.  She committed suicide and her coverage was limited.

In 2016, Karmenife Paulino went vital with her BDSM-themed photography series, which told a story of her reclaiming her strength and dignity from privileges that fraternities are given on campus.  It may seem weird at first in looking at her photos, but it is a coping mechanism from trauma as she also had to fight within herself to report a black man who allegedly assaulted her.  She was fearful in reporting him because she feared being called a sellout for turning a black man into the authorities and the history of black men as rapists were heavily used as propaganda to keep them away from white women.  The conscious community is very harsh on black women’s interaction with white men and law enforcement.  Conscious men should be more careful when using terms like sellout, race traitor, negro bed wench, black feminist, black man-hater or coon, recklessly.

In the black community, rape is not an easy thing to talk about.  Sometimes, sexual manipulation of minors turns to Stockholm Syndrome as I can recall seeing my then teen classmates and friends dating much older (adult) men.  As stated before, some women wear slut, thot, bitch and ho as a badge of honor; black feminists blur the lines even farther on whether black women should be seen as queens or hypersexual.  Hip-hop and black artists’ music videos used to create controversial stirs on the portrayal of women.  One moment, black women were displeased with the jezebel image that makes them out to be women who will sleep with anyone for fame and cash, then the most common complaint is the erasure of black women in music videos as they envy seeing rappers and R&B pretty boys with light-skinned, mixed or non-black women.  Black women’s sexuality is unclear for most on how it should it be presented.  Yes, most men like sexual appeal, but some men are getting bored with the overexposure of nudity and sex from the media.  Hence, the reason men’s rights movements were born and how black consciousness adopted conservative views.  They wanted their women covered, less miles and no kids from previous relationships or marriages.  Men’s rights groups and the conscious community do have high standards for women to follow, but once someone is making above decent money, stays out of trouble and is ready to settle down; shouldn’t that man have the right to expect women to live up to his level?

When it comes to black men who rape and abuse women, we do not protect them, unless they were already proven innocent (Nate Parker case) or something does not add up (Bill Cosby case).  Everyone deserves a fair trial, but having support is a privilege that will not be granted to every man.  Even though there are not armed guards of black men protecting black women in mass, there are those who fight and advocate on behalf of women who were abused or sexually assault.  The Irritated Genie is best example of a black conscious man who is consistent with protecting black women from sexual predators.  He has opened his radio podcast and lectures to expose sex trafficking in politics, Hollywood and even in our own communities.  Yet, he will not get a thank you from feminists, since he theorized that sexual crimes are in response to the acceptance of homosexuality.

The problem with Amber Rose’s SlutWalk is that these issues are not going to be solved by walking the streets of LA naked and attending concerts.  Remember the people who commit these crimes or harm women will not attend the slut walk.  The energy needs to be on white women, schools and public spaces that make black women feel uncomfortable.

Even when I look at the pictures of past slut walks by Amber Rose, it is no wonder why most people think the SJW generation is a joke.  Intersectionality is not working and comparing struggles with white women does not have a common denominator.  So, I am nodding my head when I saw someone bringing a BLM sign next to a white woman who thinks she is oppressed because public nudity is not accepted.