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About That Popular 'Black Films Don't Sell ...The Curious Case Of Shermika Moffitt
Mohamed Bouazizi will, one day, be known throughout the world as a Hero. He sparked the 'Arab Spring'. A street vendor, tired of being harassed and humiliated by an "official", set himself on fire to protest the injustice he and his fellow citizens were experiencing. If only he were alive to see that he changed the world.
Shermika Moffitt, age 20, has also caught our attention. Initially, it was reported that she was set on fire by three men. 'KKK' and 'Nigger' were written on the hood of her vehicle. And, she is in critical condition with burns over 60% of her body.
Yesterday, the story changed. Authorities are reporting that Ms. Moffitt "set herself on fire". The evidence of this? They found, "only her fingertips" on the tube of toothpaste that wrote the letters "KKK" and "Nigger". The only fact that remains the same of these two stories is that she is in critical condition and she has burns over 60% of her body.
As I prepare myself for a very significant stage of development for my first feature film, I am trying to stop myself from hopping on a plane to learn more about Ms. Moffitt. I want to hear and share her story, her family's story. As an Artist, self-expression is what I do, some would say, to survive. I would argue against that and say it is simply who I am. I speak up. My family created that possibility for me. But, I recognize that that is not the case for many women (in the world).
Whenever someone commits an act of violence (assuming that Ms. Moffitt set herself aflame. It's highly likely that perpetrators could have held a gun to her head and forced her to take all of these actions), I always wonder, what was the last movie or TV show they watched? Obviously, I'd be most interested in their 'image' diet. But, I am always curious about the last thing they watched. And, in Ms. Moffitt's case, I wonder, what was the last movie or TV show she saw that centered around a black female? Was it the 'Steel Magnolia' remake? Was it 'Beasts of the Southern Wild'? Was it 'Middle of Nowhere'? Did she watch a music video? It's an odd curiosity of mine. What did it feel like, for her, to be a black woman in America?
How are we seen? How do we see ourselves? The actions of Mohamed Bouazizi were, clearly, a cry to end injustice. Can we make the same case for Shermika Moffitt? Or, will she be painted as a mentally ill woman who tricked all of us into buying her madness? Will she become a target for outrage? Her actions were very specific. It was as if her inner dialogue reached the surface. An act of self-immolation for a Tunisian male was a cry to end injustice. An act of self-immolation by a black american woman appears to be an implosion. The dialogue that exists in the culture. The extreme hatred that is being leveled at our first Black President. The coded language, the racism. These things have consequences. And, although many of us write about it and rail about it, most people are ingesting a steady stream of it without an outlet.
Perhaps, this was Ms. Moffitt's cry to end the agonizing, coded racist chatter. Perhaps, it was her trying to quiet the noise, get relief from the cloud hanging over America that is dripping racism on all of us, daily, as we march toward Election day. Perhaps, she was confronting demons that swirl around her state of Louisiana; the marginalization, the poverty, the hopelessness, the statistical reality of her life that is imperiled by race.
I remember walking around Zucotti Park when 'Occupy Wall Street' had just begun. My friend and I were walking around wondering if it would stick, if it would last and make a difference. We wondered if these activists would invite the plight of being in black skin, in America, into their rallying cry. And, my friend, referencing Bouazizi said, "will we have to start setting fire to ourselves in order to be heard in this country?"
As a filmmaker, I tend to look for the hero story in the underdogs, in the marginalized. And, no, I am not ready to lay that label on Ms. Moffitt. But, I do want us to look at her experience with a nuanced eye. Not a judgmental, finger waving eye that the media may place on her. It takes a lot of pain to bring a human being to the point of self-immolation. And, I can say, Ms. Moffitt had more than enough disregard to choose from. Since Whitney Houston's death, I think of Black women often. I wonder how we're doing, if we are getting what we need to be kind to ourselves. I wonder if our relationships (romantic, friendships and familial) have love and support at the center. I wonder if media, on a larger scale, will ever portray us as complete, unencumbered women.
I can't wait for Election Day. I will be voting, again, for the man that, openly, loves his black wife. Honestly, it's the only media representation we have of that model. And, yes, I support him for more than that. He gets it. Most of his significant policies benefit women. But, most people miss that because it's in the details. 'The Affordable Healthcare Act', 'The Lilly Ledbetter Act', my President is a Feminist. And, he understands that women suffer in ways that go unnoticed. He's throwing out lifelines to make our lives a little easier.
Shermika Moffitt will not go down in history as a Martyr. She will not be labeled a Hero. She will not even have her story parsed out in a fair and balanced way. That can be said for most stories written about Black women in America. But, you know, we have Toni Morrison to help us understand who and why we are. Ms. Morrison wrote "No one ever talks about the moment you found that you were white. Or the moment you found out you were black. That's a profound revelation. The minute you find that out, something happens. You have to renegotiate everything."
Ms Moffitt, may you, finally, receive the understanding and compassion that you cried out for, no matter what happened, on that Sunday night, in the wilderness of America.
Follow Tanya Steele on Twitter at @digtanya. Or on my facebook at https://www.facebook.com/tanya.steele. Or visit digtanya.com.
24 Comments
starry118 | October 29, 2012 11:17 PM
I enjoyed reading this piece Tanya. To use CareyCarey's words: I get it. I've had similar thoughts about where we are, who we are, and the way the world is. Thank you for sharing your perspective.
treasurex | October 29, 2012 1:01 PM
i dont believe that she set herself on fire and here's why. i dont think the world and media want a race war and who in the right mind would do such a horrific thing to themself. they want us to believe she would do this to herself just so she can frame the kkk. none of this make sense to me but,,, not wanting the truth out there does make sense .maybe the only reason her finger prints are on the tooth paste is because its herz and because can u say they wripe theres OFF.
Jay | October 27, 2012 10:42 PM
There are factual inaccuraticies over all of the details you posted, even the ones you places it quotes. They didn't find her "fingertips" on the toothpaste, that doesn't even make sense. They found "only Her fingerprints at the scene, on a lighter and charcoal fluid used to start the fire". They never even stated they found her prints on the toothpaste, only they felt she used it to write the letters "KKK" and the N word. I do agree that this doesn't mean she lied or set herself on fire because as you stated someone could have forced her to do it. She never stated this but I'm sure more facts will come out, no matter what happens this poor woman needs to heal and recover. I just wanted to correct the horribly wrong statements you quoted in the blog.
Carey | October 25, 2012 7:21 PM
Hello Tanya, I get it, I got it and I believe I get you. Having read all of your posts, I would define them as "The Inquisitive World of Tanya Steele". This post, in particular, highlights how and why I've come to that conclusion. Charles Judson defined this post as "artistic navel gazing". Although I don't quite understands what he means by that, when I find myself picking lent from, and aimlessly gazing at my navel, I tend to get lost in various thoughts. Many pass by and are unrelated to my original reason for finding my "inny" that once was an "outty", but there I sit. Now, having read this post multiple times, I will agree with Charles, in that, it's not necessarily about "Shermika Moffitt". It's more like a stream of conscious thought, being shared through the perspective of a black female writer. In fact, you said: "self-expression is what I do... it is simply who I am." And throughout your piece it was filled with the questioning words... "How are we seen? How do we see ourselves?"... "I want to hear"... "I wonder if media"... "I wonder if our relationships"... "I wonder how we're doing"... "We wondered if these activists"... "What did it feel like"... "Perhaps, this was Ms. Moffitt's cry".. "It's an odd CURIOUSITY of mine". All of those questions ran through your mind and you shared them with us, hence-->"The Inquisitive World of Tanya Steele". Where I disagree with Charles is when he suggested what you could have done with this post. Because, in essence, I believe you did what you set out to do, that is, express your many thoughts on paper and inspire thought. Many of which could have inspired conversations all their own. Granted, "depression" might have been a part of the story, but I don't believe "motive" nor "blame" was the gist of this piece. In short, you're a writer who happens to be a black woman. The good ones, the good writers have a never ending thirst for knowledge and the truth. And your curiosity both enslaves you and sets you free. Your words: "I speak up. My family created that possibility for me. But, I recognize that that is not the case for many women (in the world)". Yes Tanya, I get it, I got this, and I believe I understand you. And, this was another good read.
Akimbo | October 24, 2012 7:10 PM
Listen, any time a "perpetrator" leaves behind a signature/name or seems to deliver a heavy-handed message, you have to be skeptical. We've seen this with the girl who carved a backwards B in her face, the woman who spray-painted her walls and staged a homophobic hate crime, and the woman who threw acid in her own face. Most criminals don't leave literal calling cards; they don't want to get caught. I hope this young woman gets the help she needs; these fake attacks and kidnappings cross all ethnic lines.
lauren | October 24, 2012 6:05 PM
Sad and interesting, because when I first read about it for some reason the Tawana Brawley fabrication came to mind... So tragic that mental illness is too often suffered in silence.
Charles Judson | October 24, 2012 3:56 PM
"What did it feel like, for her, to be a black woman in America?" Instead of worrying about her Media diet, I would more ponder the likely possibility that as a 20-year-old she's at the age various forms of depression begin to appear or ramp up. I haven't seen it clarified that she's also a mother, but if she is, untreated depression at her age, combined with a baby is often a disastrous recipe. Especially in the South and the Black Community. Both in which depression is seen as as sign of weakness than something that can be treated, and the "baby blues" is still seen as a minor road bump that many believe (erroneously) all mothers go through. If there is injustice, it's likely in the blindness we exhibit to this and its impact. I applaud your wanting to dissect this issue, but I'll bluntly have to say this reads more like artistic navel gazing filtered through the limited lenses of race, politics and media and not a carefully thought out examination of Moffitt's own life, mental health, and the broader implications for black women. Two important statistics. Twelve percent of women will suffer clinical depression at some point in their life. Suicide is the third leading cause of death among those 15-24. If you scroll down to the bottom of this page you'll see a map that shows a disturbing concentration of depression in the South: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm5938a2.htm Does the focus on mental health render all the other pressures of being a 20-year-old black woman in the South moot? No. However, if we're going to analyze the media, if we're going to bring them in, we'd be better off targeting how depression is covered for folks of color, especially for black women. For whom, just take being black out of the equation, are already twice as likely to suffer from depression as men. More importantly, this might be the story of a woman in crisis who showed all the symptoms and could have been helped. Yet, if we focus on the racial implications, we miss the chance to educate black families on the importance of understanding, recognizing and treating depression and other mental illnesses, to instead lay blame at the feet of problems that exist, but could have played only a partial, maybe even non-existent, role.
Winston | October 24, 2012 3:40 PM
Hero? What are you talking about? The police are going where the evidence is pointing them, and you want to do all that you can to dispute it. Maybe she did what they said she did. Where's YOUR evidence?
Donella | October 24, 2012 2:48 PM
Could the perpetrators have worn gloves, then pressed her fingers onto the toothpaste tube?
tracy | October 24, 2012 1:54 PM
In a strange coincidence, the anniversary of Kathy Change's self-immolation was Oct 22nd:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kathy_Change