Rare birds. That seems to be the theme for today.
I’m putting myself out there to reveal I’m a woman of colour. A gamer. A geek, nerdy. Introverted. A writer. Most of the things that I have written that have garnered attention have been about vampires. A bit of a rare combo if you’re trying to find like souls online.
So it resonated with me when I saw the article in NOW Magazine regarding black women involved in the metal, hardcore and punk scenes. Laina Dawes has written a book titled “What are you doing here? A Black Woman’s Life And Liberation In Heavy Metal”. She says jaunts to Black History month’s celebratory events left her “feeling not only socially and economically disenfranchised, but also questioning my place and presence within these communities.”
I can identify with that feeling.
She goes on to say “There’s a kind of black respectability politics that tells us what we should do and be to be proper black Canadians (a mythological animal of course), but this is extremely limiting of self-expression.”
She goes on to speak of black musicians who started, and continued to do, rock music:- “These musicians fearlessly expressed their individuality in an era when there were no visible gains to be made doing so.”
“The individual stories of outsiders’ internal struggles to develop black pride are what Black History Month should honour and what every North American of African origin can understand.”
The women she originally approached on the street and then followed up with declined to be interviewed “because they feared what their friends and family would think”.
“the parameters describing how black people can individualize themselves and still be considered ‘black’ are more limited,” she said about Canada, where women are fully entrenched in the punk, hardcore and punk scenes
She ends by saying “we should also celebrate the diversity of thought and preferences within our communities – something that was not always an option for our ancestors.”
Turn of phrase that made me snort:- regarding Drake “…(soliciting music videos starring himself and) the bouncing, disembodied behinds of some women.”
I’ll have to head down to HMV before the 20th to go collect the The Ladykillers dvd they have for me, so I can write that scene where my characters discuss the part where the Wayans guy gets slapped.
And speaking of birds: The Pembina institute says pesticides kill about 700 times more birds than turbines. Seems cats, chemicals – and tall buildings – are the real threat to our fine feathered friends. I mention this because I own two.
Loving Bob Marley, smoking weed and listening to reggae music does not make you a Rastafarian, regardless of the outcome between the rastafarian consulate and Snoop.
Last thought:- if you haven’t seen this video, watch it. Pretty good and says what a lot leave unsaid. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vX5ueEKsSWc&feature=player_embedded
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