On the fantasy-shelf of diversity, a collection of DOLLS on display.
Each doll with a TRY ME button: press it and she will say exactly what you always wanted to hear.
Buy one, get one free… They will forever be thankful to you!
AVAILABLE DOLLS:
Model minority:
“Don’t we look great (in the equity photo), Sir?”
Revolutionary:
“I will redeem you.”
Alibi friend:
“You are definitely NOT a racist!”
Cultural artifact:
“What would you like to know about me and my culture?”
Toilet cleaner:
“Always at your service, Madam!”
Child waiting to be rescued:
“Thank you for supporting me!”
ALREADY SOLD OUT:
Room ornament:
“I will keep myself small so that you can have space”
Music box ballerina:
“I am here to dance to make you feel wonderful”
Erotic diva:
“Ready for your most exotic fantasies!”
Piece of clay to be molded:
“Who should I be today to fit your agenda?”
Angry trouble maker:
“I will call it out and take the flak, so that you don’t have to.”
Your soul mate:
“You are white just on the outside, inside you are just like me.”
…cross the line, challenge the rank, reject the projections or dare reverse the power relationship and to the trash the threat must go.
Another doll bought in your place, after all, you are cheap.
The market is flooded with plastic merchandise: a mosaic of colourful bodies kept in place with white glue, many waiting impatiently to be on that shelf.
F**K IT! F**K IT!F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K IT! F**K…
I was NOT born to please you,
to entertain you,
to be cared, praised or pitied by you
The reason for my existence
is NOT to make “you” happen,
to prove your innocence or to make the world better for you
My body is NOT an extension of your entitlements
Neither is yours of mine
I don’t want to hurt you,
to haunt you, to intimidate you,
to harm you, or to compete with you.
You cannot demand that I teach you,
that I help you, that I convince you,
that I serve you, or that I make you feel
what you hope to feel.
I just need to BE what I need to BE
Without having to negotiate these freaking boxes all the time
And I want the same freedom for you
But this freedom is not the same as unrestricted autonomy
Because it involves unlimited accountability
And that means I cannot tell you who to be or what to do because
upon respecting your existence depends
the integrity of my own
I wait for your readiness,
in this life, in this world,
to not turn your back to the responsibility
for facing and working through
the individual and collective shit
that prevents us from breathing together
—
Gesturing Towards Decolonial Futures 