Paula Deen’s admission to using the N-word earlier this year was met with the obvious shock. But Black Twitter managed to find humor in it with the #PaulasBestDishes hastag created by TheRoot.com editor Tracy Clayton, aka @BrokeyMcPoverty.
Highlights: #40 Acres and a Moscow Mule,” wrote Joseph Lamour.
When Kanye West boasted that he was “the Tupac of product,” Black Twitter just couldn’t help themselves. Ebony.com editor Jamilah Lemieux and Clutch writer Michael Arceneaux created the hashtag #KanyeJobTitles and the rest is Twitter legend.
Highlights: “I am the Carter G Woodson of Target shopping and the Emeril Lagasse of cognac,” tweeted Lemieux.
Why on earth did Mr. Kelly create a hashtag to promote his new Black Panties album? “I want all my fans and everyone out there to know that this is REALLY me answering your questions, so fire away,” wrote Kelly. The Internet obliged and the hilarious #AskRKelly went viral.
Inspired by the many amazing Buzzfeed lists that ocassionally make you go ‘hmm’, Black Twitter created #BlackBuzzFeed for a Black audience. And hilarity ensued.
Highlight: “Paper” Deltas vs “Real” Deltas and 10 More Ridiculous Feuds You Had No Idea Even Existed #BlackBuzzfeed, tweeted Very Smart Brothas.
When Fast Company’s “25 of the Smartest Women on Twitter” failed to list any Black women, Black Twitter responded with the #SmartBlackWomenOfTwitter hashtag to point out deserving Black women, including MSNBC host Melissa Harris Perry.
It’s wasn’t always fun and games on Twitter this year. Black Twitter reacted to George Zimmerman’s acquittal with the #J4TM hashtag which continues to make an impact.
The #Solidarityisforwhitewomen hashtag was started by blogger Mikki Kendall in response to Jezebel writer Hugo Schwyzer, a self-confessed “male feminist” whose writing has targeted several women of color. Kendall challenged white feminists in the blogosphere who supported Schwyzer despite his transgressions.
#Fasttailedgirls began with a Twitter conversation around “black women, sexuality and promiscuity versus respectability: hosted by @HoodFeminism. The #Fasttailedgirls hashtag, started by Mikki Kendall (@Karynthia) and Jamie Nesbitt Golden’s (@thewayoftheid) examined stereotypes surrounding young Black women.
