Black Twitter makes everything better
Opinion: We may not be the vocal majority on the popular social media app, but we definitely keep the party—and the conversations going.
Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more opinions on theGrio.
I have personally been on Twitter since the beginning when you needed an invite from someone to get an account (shout out to my longtime friend Anil Dash for hooking me up way back when). I have watched it go from a bare-bones existence (in the beginning, there were no RTs, QTs or likes, for instance) to the powerful influencer platform it is today. There have been a lot of changes in the way that people engage with the app.
One of the biggest and most notable changes is the proliferation and subsequent prominence of what has become colloquially known as “Black Twitter.”
Let me just pause right here to say that Black people bring the spice everywhere we go. We add that little bit of razzle dazzle that is needed to level up any type of event or gathering.
So when you have an app that is conversation-based and Black people being their true Black selves join in the conversation, what do you think happens next? Magic, that’s what.
It would be one thing if Black Twitter were only involved in discussions surrounding Black culture and the like, but Black Twitter has found a way to be a subset in every other part of Twitter, including Sports Twitter, Entertainment Twitter, Political Pundit Twitter and anything else you can think of. We out here!
My favorite Twitter moments usually occur when Black Twitter watches a television show or made-for-TV movie together. The commentary is always hilarious. The memes are usually top-notch. “As a family,” we have collectively roasted the wigs in every Tyler Perry production; we have analyzed “Game of Thrones” from beginning to end and collectively bemoaned the horrible lighting choices; we’ve watched the New Edition movie, the Whitney Houston movie (the one on Lifetime, not the new one coming out, although we will likely get to that, too), the TLC movie, and the Aaliyah movie, and we have collectively panned the ones that did not meet our expectations.
There have been times when it seems like our favorite television shows have taken cues from Black Twitter, and our influence has been mentioned on various television shows more than once.
Similarly, Black Twitter has a firm standing in Sports Twitter. Although I don’t watch the NFL, I am still hyper-aware of everything that is going on in the league because Black Twitter keeps a running commentary going every season. It’s the same with college football, too. Everyone has a favorite team and a take, and those takes are shared openly on the timeline every time a game is played.
I am a huge basketball fan myself, so you can believe me when I tell you that Black Twitter is all up and through Basketball Twitter. We are present and accounted for when it comes to discussing the on-court activities of our favorite teams, and we don’t shy away from discussing the off-court shenanigans either (I mean, go on Twitter and search Ime Udoka, for instance). Josiah Johnson, known as @KingJosiah54 on Twitter, has built a huge following and a name for himself even among professional basketball’s elite because of his witty commentary and memes on Twitter. Basketball Twitter definitely reaches epic levels of funny during the NBA championships, and that is all because of Black Twitter. Don’t bother arguing with me; you know I’m right.
Black Twitter rates and reviews movies, hypes or pans new music releases, is the home of some of the most brilliant political discourse, and still finds time to randomly play the dozens with each other or otherwise roast each other when the situation calls for it.
We may not always agree on everything, but we definitely get our points across, and they are heard internationally.
You may not like us. You may not want us, but we are here to stay.
Black Twitter makes everything better, and you are a liar if you say otherwise.
Monique Judge is a storyteller, content creator and writer living in Los Angeles. She is a word nerd who is a fan of the Oxford comma, spends way too much time on Twitter, and has more graphic t-shirts than you. Follow her on Twitter @thejournalista or check her out at moniquejudge.com.
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