Normai Kordei, a member of the highly successful girl group Fifth Harmony, has announced on her Twitter that she will be taking a break from the social media platform due to a large amount of racist attacks and insults that she was a target of. She wrote a heartbreaking note, discussing her feelings towards the immense number of racist trolls, and the cyber-bullying that came along with it. Kordei also stated that she is “not the first black female celebrity to deal with this and [she’s] sure [she] won’t be the last.” This is sadly true; just recently, Ghostbusters (2016) actress Leslie Jones made a short departure from Twitter, after she encountered bigotry and ignorance targeted towards her as a black woman. Twitter was silent through out Jones’ situation, doing nothing to help and showing no care.
Although Twitter displayed initiative to assist Kordei’s position as a target of racism, this does not mean that racial hostility and violence has ended. Many women of colour still continue to face racist individuals who are nothing but ignorant and vile. From Michelle Obama to Beyonce, people take advantage of social media sites to post racist comments directed at black women rather than using the internet to widen their narrow perspective, and to erase the prejudices they hold. It’s a shame that after decades of activism and hashtags such as #BlackGirlMagic showing the utter talent, beauty and intelligence that women of colour have, people continue to “thrive” off of their racist and hateful mindsets.
Fans of Normani Kordei gathered to express their love and support to the singer, but some people didn’t have anything to say; more specifically, the members of her own group. Fifth Harmony singers Lauren Jauregui, Ally Brooke, and Dinah Jane tweeted absolutely nothing in relation to Kordei. Some people interpreted this tweet from member Camila Cabello as support towards Kordei, but the fact that Cabello did not even mention her name shows a certain lack of respect and courage to fully stand up to the racism that Normani received. The official Fifth Harmony Twitter page did, however, tweet the hashtag #WeLoveYouNormani.
Whether you enjoy Fifth Harmony’s music or not, one can not dismiss and neglect the endless amount of racism that Kordei and other black women experience on a daily basis. Whether people are intimidated by the success that these women have accomplished or they blindly believe in white supremacy, it is unfair and unjust that, rather than having pride in what they have achieved, they have to unfortunately address the horrible and cruel remarks people make. Twitter, and other media outlets, should be a safe place where celebrities can communicate with their fans and express their interests and art, not a harsh atmosphere filled with discrimination, whether it is racism, homophobia, sexism, transphobia, etc. Let’s take a stand and protect Kordei and other WoC, and continue to help demolish the completely unacceptable systematic racism within our culture.
