Thread by @GothamGirlBlue

Amy Siskind is out here blocking black women and deleting their criticism and I have some thoughts.

While no one should be punished for changing, Amy Siskind said some real shit. For years. Before Trump offended her. That is it’s own problem, and one that has to be accepted.

Because in order for this #resistance thing to work out, the power can’t come from converts alone. It has to come from the people who weren’t being heard the entire time. And Amy is sitting right in the middle of a credibility gap.

How can any of us know that she’s operating in good faith? This thread covers her major missteps, but highlights: wanting Sarah Palin to wield national power; attacking Obama on thin grounds; donating to Romney.

https://twitter.com/dianelyssa/status/1028846912827547649?s=21

Siskind wasn’t just quietly voting GOP or thoughtlessly asking to touch black women’s hair; she was out there actively promoting Sarah “half-term gov” Palin to run the United States government *and* attacking the first black President like he started barbecuing nearby.

That level of Becky-ness cannot merely be stopped; it must be atoned for. And that’s where Siskind is dropping the ball. No one is asking her to grab a time machine and stop herself from demanding the manager. We’re asking her to acknowledge the harm she did.

It’s rough to submit yourself to someone else for atonement. That’s why it’s a fancy sacrament and takes work and people debate its worthiness all the time. Siskind needs to do that hard work, submit to the inspection of black women, and integrate that feedback.

Why does she need to do this? To be a damn decent person for one. But in a practical sense: because black women are the backbone of any meaningful understanding of where our problems started and what it will take to resolve them. And she doesn’t have our trust.

Without us, Siskind’s white privilege will let her get on television and be the face of “resistance,” but it won’t galvanize actual action. It will generate her personal wealth, but it won’t uplift the people she says she’s doing this for.

If you want to add more zeroes to Siskind’s bank account without making a dent in Trumpism, be my guest. But if you think Trump is the manifestation of problems that go way deeper, you’ll want people with the platforms and power of Siskind to apologize and improve.

The fact that Siskind immediately shut down when faced by black women with more credibility is telling on her. The fact that she deleted their criticism is telling on her. The fact that white people are defending her is telling on them.

But #listentoblackwomen, amirite? 🙄