Megan Thee Stallion & the Politics of Respecting Black women

“Black women are so unprotected & we hold so many things in to protect the feelings of others without considering our own.” -Megan Thee Stallion

Megan Thee Stallion will always be iconic to me. Her music is unapologetically Southern — her lyricism is sensual, confident, and catchy. She is astonishingly beautiful and charismatic — and a woman embracing her own sexual prowess and sexuality is both empowering and exhilarating. In a genre and industry that is mostly and historically male dominated and pervaded with sentiments of female objectification, male conquest, and homophobia — it is refreshing to see a Black woman owning and defining her own sex narrative. Megan also continues to redefine and showcase the multi-dimensionality of Black womanhood — not only is she an accomplished and Grammy award winning rapper, she also came on to the scene as a college student, pursuing a health administration degree at Texas Southern University. Megan consistently challenges historic and contemporary definitions of Black womanhood. America has always had an “oppressive obsession” with Black women bodies and sexuality

In 1800s, an African woman by the name of Saartje “Sarah” Baartman was paraded around Europe due to people’s obsession with her large buttocks and vivacious curves. Showmen exhibited her throughout Europe, and she was forced to sing and dance in front of white onlookers. Sarah Baartman was merely a form of entertainment for white audiences — this was accomplished through the total dehumanization and subjugation of her bodily autonomy. Much of this mistreatment of Black women bodies continued, and in hip-hop, rap culture specifically, we witnessed the advent of the “video vixen”, the scantily clad woman who only served the role of being the object of a male rapper’s desire. In a world that has historically objectified Black women with a complete disregard for our intelligence and voice — Megan is letting America know that Black women can be both seen and heard. A Black woman can be bold and self-assured in her sexuality, while also being educated, and vocal.

Even despite the ranks that Megan has ascended to both musically and professionally, she, alone can never break the ubiquitous walls of patriarchy and misogynoir. Misogynoir, a term coined by feminist scholar Moya…