“Let me say three things about Azealia Banks:
1. Weaponizing anti-Asian and Islamophobic white supremacy against an Asian man is vile and should be unequivocally condemned. This violence doesn’t just impact Zayn Malik—a wealthy cis male British celebrity. This violence impacts an entire global community that is under the gun of both anti-Asian/Islamophobic violence within British-US borders and the imperialist subjugation of Asian and Muslim people across the world.
2. I need folks to also remember that Banks violently dehumanized a fourteen-year-old Black girl who called out her abusive rant. No matter how well Skai Jackson supposedly "clapped back” against Banks, we must remember that NO CHILD or teenager should be put in the position of defending themselves against public internet abuse from an adult. I’m heartened that Skai Jackson is able to defend herself from a grown woman’s abuse. But I am also angry that the environment of mass media and telecommunications forces her to do so.
3. We have to develop better responses to the abusive behavior perpetuated by oppressed people. Whenever Banks engages in harm, people either reflexively respond with misogynoir, femmephobia, and ableism in an attempt to shut her up, or they make excuses for her in a misguided attempt to protect her from misogynoirist abuse. Both of the strategies are deeply harmful and do absolutely nothing to address the reasons why Azealia Banks and many oppressed people weaponize the very systems of violence that threaten to destroy us.
Finally, more than anything, I want some real solutions for accountability to come out of these public conversations we are having about Banks and her Twitter meltdown. Skai Jackson deserves better. Zayn Malik deserves better. WE ALL deserve better.“
- Y M Carrington
