Imagine growing up in an unwelcoming and unsafe environment that you're supposed to call home. Constantly being faced with rejection and misunderstanding in a "home" that villanizes you and everyone who looks like you. Well, if you're a Black person or other person of color, you're no stranger to this--transplanted into a world of rigid, paleolithic systems where ideals and beliefs of the misguided make up most of the ruling class.
People of color, especially Black people, constantly encounter harmful messaging in environments that insinuate they are "not good enough," "do not matter," or they are simply ignored and counted out altogether. And our history of building widespread, thriving communities of wealth, culture, and industrialism has forever been swept under the rug just to keep Black people blind to their true legacies. Stories like these, that reflect our true greatestness, are what we need to connect and identify with as often as possible. Henry Ford’s old quote says, “Whether you think you can or you think you can’t, you’re right,” which echoes the idea that we are essentially what we believe about ourselves, and what we connect with or are exposed to the most frequently is what is embedded in our minds about who we are and all that we're capable of achieving. Poor portrayals of Black people in mass media and classroom history only leave us to cling to untrue ideals that we're not worthly of all the goodness that life has to offer, let alone any sustainable ounce of joy. By actively countering limiting beliefs and misrepresentations, Black people can assume control over their mental narratives, which is a crucial component to their future success and advancement. We must constantly refererence what and how much we've overcome and continue to achieve so to not lose touch with our true heritage.
Because of all this and more, I created We Are The Bar--a brand to keep Black people, and other communities who can relate, grounded in love, inspiration, and positive represention. I believe it's vital to actively sustain narratives reflective of us in the most positive light through both positive representation and reinforcment in order to sustain ever-exspansive growth and evolution within commuities of color. And in doing this, I envision a domino effect of empowerment and connection that will strengthen the infrastructure of Black people and Black culture both internally and externally.
Psychologist Rick Snyder helps us understand that hope is a cognitive process that makes it possible for us to proactively pursue the plans we hope to achieve. Protecting our peace and joy is a daily job that must be taken seriously for the sake of our mental health and fortitude, which falls at the intersection of sustaining hope. We should constantly be pouring truth, love and enlightenment into ourselves and each other, while also making it standard to learn our history and about our ancestors. I can't stress enough how vital it is that we actively refute false narratives and misconceptions--not only for the world, but for ourselves and the future US's of the world. Too many Black people believe that slavery marked the beginning of Black history or they are led to believe that they're not worthy of nice things, which I came close to believing a few times, but both are furthest from the truth. We actually began as regular-smegular-degular human beings 'til we began rein as kings, queens and rulers of empires. Such empires continued and thrived for centuries until they were torn down and broken apart by jealous, greedy nomads. And this in addition to all the recent rollbacks to our economical progress and civil rights, it's painstakingly clear that the responsibility falls on us to keep ourselves and our communities uplifted. Black leadership is apart of all of us--giving way for unlimited opportunities to promote and uplift each other as we are also THE BAR for each other. The phrase, "lift while I climb," is definitely a personal value held close. Even if someone is not where they want to be, I believe that doing what you can is sufficient enough.
Taking a look at the different industries, currently, Black people are definitely STILL breaking barriers and shattering ceilings--creating massive pathways to greater heights, greater access, and greater inclusion. And lastly, Black people really ARE THE BAR and have been for centuries. And though we’ve been robbed of and manipulated out of our own inventions, cultures, styles, and stories since forever—so many of our developments have shaped and continues to shape all cultures throughout the world. So many in fact that there's no excuse for our people to sit back and NOT recognize our true divinity. And though similar schemes have evolved to be more sophisticated and are still quite prevalent today, we also continue to grow more sophisticated at a rapid pace just as we've always done. We Are The Bar is not only here to inspire Black people and their joy and excellence, but to also celebrate them.
Thank you for joining and for supporting!
Share below what keeps you motivated and inspired?