Twitter Fingers
With the spark of the new semester dying, Missouri Western’s NAACP decided to light up the campus by hosting a Twitter Fingers event where students had their chance to discuss and debate hot trending topics.
The event was held on September 30 by the University’s chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, more commonly known as NAACP.
The Twitter Fingers event was led by NAACP President Tadaeja Weakley, a junior at Missouri Western. Weakley displayed a controversial tweet and after reading it, she opened the floor for each person to voice their opinion.
“I wanted people to be able to share their opinions with no limitations,” Weakley said. “I also wanted people to be able to listen to other people’s opinions and see things from the opposing viewpoint.”
Like a Presidential debate, each student was given time to state their opinion without interruptions. The NAACP ensured that everyone’s opinion was represented, and they wanted to provide a safe environment for students to speak.
When asked what originally inspired the event and why the idea came to her, Weakley said she wanted a place for Missouri Western’s Black student population to express themselves and talk freely.
“Often, young people, particularly young black people, feel suppressed or the need to censor themselves,” Weakley said.
Weakley chose many popular discourses in the Black community, including tweets such as, “Wearing a bonnet in public is way worse than wearing a durag,” tweeted by user swoleracks.
Regarding the previous statement, the room was split by gender. The women spoke out against the tweet, stating that bonnets are the female equivalent to durags, a popular head garment worn by Black men to protect their hair; however, all of the men in attendance agreed with the tweet.
“It was very interesting to hear a male’s point of view on these topics,” Weakley said. “I feel like males don’t get a chance to express their opinions, so it was great to give them the opportunity to do so.”
While there are many social media that contain content that could be considered controversial, Weakley explained chose Twitter because it is a social media platform where a conversation can quickly go awry. She saw this happen during Twitter Fingers.
“I feel like I learned people’s true personalities,” Weakley said. “The real them — raw and uncut.”
Additionally, many of the tweets discussed revolved around racism and cultural appropriation.
“It’s 2021. I will not be teaching White people about cultural appropriation. You will be bullied,” a tweet by Chicagoan Miss Toto said.
Some tweets tackled age-old gender stereotypes, such as who should pay for the first date or whether the bill should be shared. Others addressed body image, as the widely popular Brazilian Butt Lift is currently gaining traction in mainstream media.
