Bubbly Black Girl.
@tilleryphd .
In Schools & Pop Culture .
THE SPIRIT MURDERING OF THE BUBBLY BLACK GIRL .
When joy, enthusiasm, and personality in Black girls are slowly punished out of them.
Bubbly Black Girl .
@tilleryphd .
WHAT IS SPIRIT MURDERING?
Patricia Williams (1987) described
spirit murder as a crime of racism that wounds the spirit.
Bettina Love (2013, 2016) applies this concept to schools, where Black children are denied safety,
protection, nurturance, and belonging
-slowly eroding their dignity and joy.
Bubbly Black Girl.
@tilleryphd .
THE "BUBBLY" BLACK GIRL.
Joyful.
Expressive.
Optimistic.
Quirky.
But even in pop culture, she can be seen as:
"annoying"
"too much"
"doing the most" .
And in schools, those same traits are often disciplined or chastised instead of nurtured. Her joy
becomes something others have to manage instead of celebrate.
Bubbly Black Girl.
@tilleryphd .
HOW SPIRIT MURDERING HAPPENS.
Bubbly Black girls are constantly
told to:
⚫ tone it down.
⚫ be quieter.
⚫ be less visible or that they.
⚫ aren't "Black Enough" .
•
Not all at once.
But slowly.
Over time, the message becomes: Your personality is a problem.
@tilleryphd, Black Royalty, shared the text and images below.
There has been a lot of talk lately about the “Bubbly Black girl,” starting with critiques of Janine on Abbott Elementary. Yet this is bigger than pop culture.
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#blackwomen #92percent #tv #blacksky #addtoblacksky