Pro-black simply means that you are a supporter of Black Empowerment. It means you are fully aware of the necessity of black empowerment due to the historical and modern context of racial inequality.
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The community does a great job of empowering black people of all skin tones as well as complimenting those who are rocking their natural hair. Pro-blackness plays a key role in black people embracing themselves and their cultures. It has also contributed to the decline in relaxer system sales, as numerous black individuals are embracing their natural hair and choosing to not appease white supremacy.
Pro-blackness sees beauty in all black people. It recognizes not just racism, but colorism as well, which gives preferential treatment to those with lighter complexions. People of color with darker complexions have a tougher time obtaining opportunities and jobs.
Even with all of the good that comes along with the pro-black community, there are also toxic aspects such as respectability politics being preached, homophobia, transphobia, ableism, and misogynoir. Respectability politics is defined as attempts by marginalized groups to police their own members and to show their social values as being continuous and compatible with mainstream values, rather than challenging the mainstream for its failure to accept difference. An example would be telling black boys to stop wearing hoodies and sagging their pants because it's unacceptable in our white-dominated society. Black people, who take ownership of the stereotypes, are more times than not shamed by the pro-black community as well as blamed for their mistreatment by society. For example: "Maybe if you dressed accordingly, you wouldn't have gotten shot or looked suspicious! Just stop dressing like a thug." This doesn't just happen according to attire, this happens with language as well. The black people who speak in African American Vernacular English (AAVE) are told to stop speaking so "improperly" and "ghetto," while white people who speak the same way are seen as acceptable. No one should be harmed because of the way that they speak or dress.
Homophobia and transphobia are also huge issues within the movement. The community is very exclusive due to their toxic cisnormative and heteronormative beliefs. It's very rare to see a pro-black person advocating for the empowerment of non-heterosexual and trans persons. These elements are seen as hindrances to their blackness, so the majority of the community fails to acknowledge these communities.
Ableism, which is discrimination in favor of able-bodied people,is another issue and ittends to be overlooked. Mental disabilities are viewed as a manifestation of eurocentrism, so their existence gets rejected heavily within the black community. A black person with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) will have their mental disability go unacknowledged by the black community, which is tremendously influenced by the societal expectation for black people to be strong, independent, and be the best of the best by going above and beyond. So, disabilities are regarded as "excuses."
Misogynoir, defined as misogyny directed towards black women, where race and gender both play roles in bias, is another issue. Black women who embrace their sexuality are viewed as unladylike and are told dress how they want to be addressed by those who preach the respectability politics rhetoric, yet also preach against black men being unfairly targeted because of the way that they dress. Black women are expected to only embrace their blackness, but not their womanhood because it sounds "too feminist" of them to do so. Black women who wear weave, dress immodestly, are employed in the sex work industry, or speak in AAVE are regarded as inferior. It's even worse if an unfortunate event occurs to them, such as sexual assault, because they'll more than likely be blamed for their attire, behavior, or occupation. Despite this happening to women in general, I can assure you that it's heightened for black women because we have all of these impossible standards to live up to.
In essence, pro-blackness should be inclusive for all black people of all backgrounds, no matter if they blast rap music, wear grills, speak in AAVE, relax their hair, are on government assistance, are employed in sex work, are LGBTQ+, or are disabled physically or mentally. It should empower everyone or else it's just as selective as our society is about what's acceptable or beautiful.
