Tenae The Blogger

 I've been a college graduate for a week and two days now. For the past 4 years, I've spent majority of my time in the mountains at WCU. Every school year I began to come home less and call my college town "home" more. Yet here I am 4 years later back in the place I was once so familiar with but now it is somehow different. Buildings that I'd drive by regularly have been knocked down and old towns have begun to be gentrified. While this is the real home I know and love, it's unfamiliar. For the first 3 days of being back home, I found myself wondering in Walmart everyday. Now Cullowhee and Sylva only had one major shopping area which was Walmart. I would find myself wondering in and around the aisles for almost whole hours while talking on the phone because there wasn't much else to do. However, Walmart sort of connected me to home. Here, it is up the street so while the unfamiliarity of the mountains was there, so was the comfort of the Walmart.

C ollege life can be hard. We get caught up in our present, our past, and our futures. We juggle class  schedules, work schedules and time with loved ones. Sometimes we don't spend the time we should grinding for those degrees, getting in our bags, or picking up the phone. We're faced with separate trials and tribulations in the different aspects of our lives. We're faced with things opposing our success like hard tests, Satan, or individuals who lack the slightest care for our best interest. The dark clouds seem to cloud our vision before we can see the light. We pray and we ponder. How do we get through this? Will  we get through this? Yes! This post results from trying times of the last few weeks. It manifested from feelings of discouragement, underappreciated, lack of support. It was written through texts with loved ones remembering that I am supported and appreciated. It was formed through feelings of worry and sorrow yet finished through trium

  King’s Theory of Racism is one that is often overlooked. The theory of racism accurately encompasses every experience of a black person in a white supremacist world. We tend to see Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. as a reverend, a conservative activist, and a promoter for unity rather than a radical or a philosopher. In his theory of racism, he lays out three components which are irrational fears, sociopolitical, and cognitive and empathetic failures. These not only serve as a why but also a how. Why is there racism and racial domination with whites acting as the dominators at this era and how can this treatment be broken. If we separate King, the philosopher, from his popular image we are left with a deeper understanding of racism and how it is reinforced not only by whites during the time but also government institutions. King’s theory of racism can help us analyze even the smallest of actions by white supremacists and evaluate the successes of resistance and activism by blac

The National Pan-Hellenic Council (NPHC) consists of the nine historical Black Greek Letter Organizations (BGLOs). Theses nine fraternities and sororities make up the Divine 9 (D9). In this post it will often be referred to as the council. If you've read one of my earlier posts then you are aware that I am a proud member of an organization in the Divine 9. I should say that this isn't a post where I brag about my beloved sorority or where I discuss the history behind the Divine 9. This is a raw post about sexism and misogyny within the council. This discussion should hold the understanding that a sexist may not always be a misogynist, but a misogynist is always a sexist. Sometimes, Greeks are "supposed" to represent the "best of the best", creme de la creme. We each are supposed to have certain standards and purposes that we uphold ourselves to. Often time, none of this is true. People get caught up in the letters and the atmosphere and forget that th

This post is inspired by the 6 part Surviving R. Kelly documentary on Lifetime. This has sparked a lot of debate on social media regarding age gaps, laws, who's really the victim, cover ups and any other aspect of sexual assault. I realized that people lack morality when it comes to sexual assault, but this wasn't a new idea. We see the victims get blamed and predators protected. In this post, I want to focus of predators, enablers, and accountability. While sexual assault is not exclusive to any community but, this post will center around the black community. First, it is only right to discuss R. Kelly and others like him. We already know that the music industry is built off of sexism and misogyny. The thing about men who work in the industry is that they receive an automatic shield. They are protected by the agencies and even their fans. No matter how horrendous their crime may be, they will still be loved. Those they prey on are used. They are exploited sexually and

Last week, I celebrated by my second AKAversary. November 20th, 2018, marked the date that I joined the best sorority there is, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Two years ago, I officially gained 10 lifelong sisters. Most of the women on my line were either friends, someone I had oddly crossed paths with before, or someone else I knew. Regardless of our standing before, they truly became my sisters. Greek life was something I was familiar with before college. There were signs all around me, but I lacked the understanding. My old high school Vice Principal is a brother of Omega Psi Phi. I remember being in his office and seeing purple and gold, but not understanding the meaning. I had a business teacher during my freshman year of high school that I would later discover was one of my Sorors. As time would go on I would learn that I had several family members that were also my Sorors. Just before I got to campus I was introduced to the world of Greek life and once I stepped foot on

This post was due weeks ago. It was due at the height of the Kavanaugh situation....or so I thought. I started this post and then stopped for a bit. During that break there was a number of people who expressed their clear disagreement with the government and the decision made to confirm Kavanaugh. When I learned about the results on Kavanaugh, I was disappointed. This was some of the most disappointed political news I had read in a while. News worse than when Trump had won the election. As a woman, I felt as though I had been failed. As a constituent, I felt as though, despite many calls to Thom Tillis, I had been failed. This was the opportunity for American leaders to show us the integrity we think they often lack but they just proved us to be right. I want it to be clear that all people, both men and women, were/are upset, angry, confused over the ordeal. In the fight of politics, the people that are supposed to serve and protect all of us have failed us. The immoral system built b