Ayesha Curry, wife of basketball superstar Steph Curry, is no stranger to social media, especially Twitter. She’s been seen by many as the model black woman and the perfect wife. But one has to wonder whether or not the positive attitude towards her is completely positive. With every complimentary tweet about her, there always seems to be a part of those tweets that shames other women—particularly black women—for not meeting the standard that has been placed upon her. But that’s what makes this phenomenon so problematic and fascinating. I call this phenomenon the “Ayesha Curry Effect”.
This effect occurs whenever Ayesha Curry appears at one of her husband’s games, either standing next to him or showing support, and the reaction to said appearance results in glorification of her no matter how arbitrary the action. A side effect to this is that some reactions involve derogatory comments or generalized slut shaming towards women who, well for lack of a better term, aren’t Ayesha Curry. These comments range from questioning women as to why they can’t be like Ayesha Curry, to blatant slut shaming and calling these women hoes.
But what about Ayesha Curry makes her Twitter’s archetype for the perfect wife? Well first one must look at the tweets that are about her. At the time of writing this article, Curry last appeared on TV five days ago during her husband’s game against the Portland Trailblazers. She was shown cheering on her husband as they defeated the Trailblazers. Now while this may seem like expected behavior for the wife of an athlete, Twitter exploded when she did it. Here’s a couple of examples.
Always RT. this is the goal of all women especially Black, less amber rose, more Ayesha curry, u thots. https://t.co/aQ3wl7mtZV
— ___Hotep Commandant_ (@MikaelTheSword) May 2, 2016
Ayesha Curry is beautiful inside and out. Supports her man, not a hoe, has a beautiful family, among other things. Steph found a good wife.
— Adam Johnson™ (@TigerPanthrHeat) May 13, 2016
Ayesha Curry is what y’all ladies should aspire to be……..not a hoe….
— Mamba Out – Kobe (@CallMe___Kratos) May 12, 2016
What these men fail to see is that this is a standard black women and has been met for years. History has shown countless examples of supportive black women in far more dire situations than a playoff basketball game. Women like Coretta Scott King, whom stood behind her husband Martin Luther King Jr. during the Civil Rights movement. Black women, despite the stereotypes, have proven themselves as some of the most resilient people in history. But now some black women can’t even use a Snapchat filter without being called a hoe.
Perhaps the Ayesha Curry Effect occurs because she is perceived as fitting the archetypal image of the stay-at-home wife—despite the fact that she has her own cooking show—in a world where women are increasingly becoming more independent. And what does Ayesha Curry have to say about all of this? Don’t worry she’s already made it abundantly clear before that she doesn’t want to be used to slut shame girls. So take it from the lady herself; don’t do it.
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