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Original poster

Is Beyonce lemonade the most powerful black feminist piece of work?

303 replies

GetInFormationLadies · 26/04/2016 09:37

I'm barely over the death of prince but this album as made me shed a lake ful of tears in the last day.

It's such a powerful, strong love filled album that will help all black women get through even their darkest days.

She has left behind her sugar pop to try something very risky but to follow her heart.

I can not recommend it enough.

OP posts:
Alisvolatpropiis · 26/04/2016 20:36

What is all this "she decided to go back to being black"?

Has Beyoncé ever been white? No.

JayDot500 · 26/04/2016 20:37

Forget Becky, it's the whole '...with the good hair' bit that resonates. Lil Kim changed because the guys she dated always left her for people with European features. Beyonce has sung what lil Kim, and many other black women, will have experienced. Only a few has the low self esteem and bank account to go the way of lil Kim. Jay Z don't mean a thing, this is a wider issue.

In my own life, my brother and male cousins have all decided to settle with white women. This was not a problem until they were very honest and started the whole 'we hate the head scarf... black women have attitude blah blah' talk.

Becky 'with the good hair' just echoes the problems we experience with black men. This is a black experience, not just a sentence imo

RudeElf · 26/04/2016 20:37

Do you know I fucking hate that a man's adultery is being used to beat down his wife and keep her in her place! Hmm how dare beyonce stand up for women when she cant even keep her man in check huh? Angry

MistressMerryWeather · 26/04/2016 20:38

What exactly are the actions of a proud black person

I think using your best weapon (in this case fame) to bring attention to the atrocities that the African American community are being put through is a pretty good start.

Whether people like it or not she's taking a risk and trying making a difference. That should really outweigh any negative feelings about her complexion.

MistressMerryWeather · 26/04/2016 20:40

Well not someone having loads and loads of surgery to get rid of their black features and turn themselves white

That's honestly the biggest pile of shite.

What are all these surgeries? What do they entail?

Daffolill · 26/04/2016 20:40

Mrsceee I think writing and singing a song referring to your husbands infidelity is somewhat welcoming comments on the state of the marriage.

The "power" couple are hardly known for keeping their personal life private or for being particularly discrete.

IsmellSwell · 26/04/2016 20:40

But light skinned black women are generally shown as the desirable woman in a film or TV show. Wasn't it Straight Outta Compton where the casting call break down was released asking for

I read that the reason lighter skinned black people are more desirable in films is all to do with lighting.
If a person has a very dark skin tone their features don't show up so well on camera in certain lighting.

This is what I read. It is not my opinion.

BrandNewAndImproved · 26/04/2016 20:45

I was on about Lil Kim, do you need a before and after picture?

MistressMerryWeather · 26/04/2016 20:48

I have seen what Lil Kim has done to herself. I'm not sure her quest was to 'turn herself white' though.

Either way, that's a totally different kettle of fish from Beyonce.

Daffolill · 26/04/2016 20:49

Rudelf it's not about keeping her man in check Hmm I personally don't see a woman who stays in a relationship with a man who has allegedly Had numerous affairs as a particularly strong, inspirational woman. That's not a relationship I would like my daughter to aspire to.

RudeElf · 26/04/2016 20:57

Yes but that doesnt make her disqualified from being a feminist daffolil as some have said here on this thread. Christ if we rule out every woman who has had or has a bad relationship from being a feminist then we would be left with very few. I say we, i would be excluded from the sisterhood under those conditions.

Daffolill · 26/04/2016 21:11

Yes fair enough most of us who consider ourselves feminists have been in bad relationships etc but I think putting yourself forward as a feminist icon you need to be living a life that promotes feminism.

I just find her hypocrital, even in her music her songs are all about how strong and independent she is yet she's putting up with all this shit from that wanker.

PrimalLass · 26/04/2016 21:13

What business does anyone have commenting on another's marital state/dynamics??

Hmm Confused

Beyonce made sure everyone is commenting about it - no one forced her to put it all out there.

CaptainMarvelDanvers · 26/04/2016 21:20

Eat the cake Anna Mae.

She claims that Tina Turner was her idol growing up but then she mouthed these words along with her husband during a performance. She lacks integrity, she says what sells or what gets her attention.

BrandNewAndImproved · 26/04/2016 21:24

I forgot about the eat the cake shit. I have no idea why people idolise her so much.

MrsCeee · 26/04/2016 21:24

Daffodil my comment was said in the context of addressing the "She is not a feminist because she chooses to remain married to a husband who cheats on her". Whether she chooses to or not, her Marital issues (real or imagined) are going to be discussed by people who choose to do just that...but really, who and where is this authority figure on Things That Get Your Feminist Membership revoked..? There should not be a relationship between the two. Are we saying Only true feminists are women who have divorced their cheating husbands the moment they became aware of said infidelity?

You do realise that that type of thinking is the same reason why so many people are reluctant to identify as being Feminist or holding Feminist viewpoints. Someone on a soapbox is eager to scream out "But but you do not do X so how dare you claim to be a feminist?!". I'm sure plenty of men do this too but it's very disheartening when even one woman accuses another of not being a real feminist based on such grounds. It feeds into other unhelpful accusations which make staying quiet the more appealing option...

Daffolill · 26/04/2016 21:30

Like I said in a previous post I agree that many of us who identify as feminists have been in bad relationships etc but for somebody to be a feminist icon then yes I believe that they should be in a relationship built on equality. Not a relationship where a man does whatever while his wife's waiting at home acting as if everything's fine.

She may well feel that she's a feminist and that's her right but I also have the right to think she's a hypocrite and to not see her as a feminist icon.

The eat the cake Anna may just highlighted how hypocrital she is. Singing that in one song and then about independent women in another Confused

MrsCeee · 26/04/2016 21:37

Primal Lass please see my comment to Daffodil about the context in which I said that.

I'm pretty confident people have been commenting on the dynamics within their relationship a long time before they were married. I'm pretty sure the majority of the talk was "Oh she's made a smart career move dating Jay Z who is very rich and successful. He sure is ugly though...and not short of beautiful women..etc etc".

Perhaps I should have written this:
Oh for goodness sakes, you are allowed to be a feminist and have an adulterous husband.
What business does anyone have commenting on another's marital state/dynamics and then deciding that you no longer meet the Feminist job specifications because your marital state/dynamics do not equate to XYZ and you are with immediate effect dismissed from your Feminist Post

If MN had an Edit button then I could have avoided the confusion and saved myself the embarrassment of typos Autocorrect fail......

flingingmelon · 26/04/2016 21:48

Before you get too upset about the 'Becky with the good hair' comment, this is worth watching;

MrsCeee · 26/04/2016 21:49

She may well feel that she's a feminist and that's her right but I also have the right to think she's a hypocrite and to not see her as a feminist icon.

Okay Daffodil. You are right, that is your right.
I hope I'm not coming across as Beyonce's Super fan.

I simply take issue with the thinking that "Choosing to remain married to an adulterous spouse means one can no longer identify as a feminist".
That's all.

SuckingEggs · 26/04/2016 21:55

Is she being a feminist, though? Or simply a feisty, angry, strong woman whose bloke has shagged around?

EnthusiasmDisturbed · 26/04/2016 21:59

I think many would struggle to go along with the idea that a women is a strong woman if she stays with a husband that constantly cheats on her and isn't that discreet and has the wealth to be able to walk away

A feminist maybe to some a feminist icon no her career has been very much managed by men and her first feminist songs were very girl power but she is moving into a different direction and wants to be taken more seriously and certainly ruffling a few feathers

RudeElf · 26/04/2016 22:02

a feisty, angry, strong woman

I'm sorry, i'm not good with interpretting tone in text and i'm not familiar with your posting history, but this is a tongue in cheek comment, yes?

quencher · 26/04/2016 22:04

Jay you put that very well. I was going to say something similar. The becky with the good hair has nothing to do with dick sucking when you look at from the content of the album.

One of the biggest issues black women have with black men especially in America and also the shocking experience I encountered in London is that,
1- the black woman is only allowed to date black men. Most who date outside of the race are frowned upon. Thank goodness that this is changing. It's usually done by black men or women who can't see dating past the black race.

2- there is this animosity in the black community by black women who frown upon black men dating white women. This has not changed much because Usain bolt is a resent testament. The words I have always heard people brandish about is "all the good men date out side of the race to gain trophy wives to prove they are better than the rest". From a feminist perspective it can be seen as an identity crisis. From reading a research awhile back. The only group of people who don't prefer their race first when dating are black men. Their first choice I think was South American Latina followed by white. Black women were at the bottom of their bucket list.
Similar idea was used for the movie "saved the last dance". With Kerry Washington and Julia styles. The movie I have seen that tackles this head on is "dear white people " directed and written by Justin semien and based on the same book by written by him too.

The one thing I would love movies that are directed at black people as the target audience is to stop snide comments regarding dating outside of the race when the woman in the movie decides to do this. I have seen so many that is would have to count which one hasn't.

Lil Kim has so much issues and it's all down to her experience of dating. The book i recommended for someone above I think mentions her too. The book deals with the good hair bad hair skin and the lot and her dating outside her race.

Rudelf it's not about keeping her man in check. I personally don't see a woman who stays in a relationship with a man who has allegedly Had numerous affairs as a particularly strong, inspirational woman. That's not a relationship I would like my daughter to aspire to.
I must admit I find it difficult to understand it from the general point of view. However, when I look at it from a black woman's point of view, the low number of marriages among black women especially in America is staggering. The amount of black children without fathers is a lot. This is from an honest point of view. At the same time i don't feel like it's right to tell a woman to stay in a loveless, cheating marriage just to serve the purpose of constitute a stable family. I absolutely would love for some black fathers to work harder at keeping their families or staying in contact.

I don't know if she trying to send a message the same way she did with single ladies. I know that song was directed at black women.

MrsCeee · 26/04/2016 22:05

I imagine the poster is a GF, RudeElf