Some in the new music marketplace were being unsurprised when the allegations about the DJ Tim Westwood arrived to light previous week. There experienced lengthy been tales recounted by Black females of his alleged abuse of electricity – rumours that circulated among good friends in Black nightlife and the audio field. An investigation by the BBC and the Guardian facts the accounts of a number of Black females, some young adults at the time – of alleged predatory conduct and groping on the portion of the veteran DJ. Some declare to have been groped at his displays, whilst some others preserve that they were being enticed to a flat on the assure of qualified assistance, only to be abused.
In 2020, a Twitter account was established, named Surviving Tim Westwood and a hashtag of the exact same name started to trend. Then the account disappeared, probably because of to Westwood’s lawful group, as he has denied all the allegations. Nonetheless it was also potentially indicative of a deep-seated truth: that Black women’s voices are frequently silenced. This is just a person case in point of how misogynoir, the phrase made use of to explain misogyny specifically directed at Black females, might have aided and abetted Westwood in keeping away from accountability until finally now.
Westwood was a deified figure within just Black audio – beloved by occasion-goers as properly as sector gatekeepers. Numerous people, especially Black guys, credit rating him with giving hip-hop and rap tunes that would if not have been relegated to the underground a mainstream platform. What is telling about that argument is how Westwood’s negligible affect in a lifestyle that is far larger than him is handled as extra significant than the allegations built by Black gals. So, while the powerful, predominantly white, business executives who continued to hire him as those allegations swirled should really be held accountable, there is plainly an intraracial gender concern listed here, too – namely that Black women’s tales were being diminished in order to justify Westwood’s standing in Black tradition overall.
Colourism plays a portion far too. Elegance criteria exalt lily-white or racially ambiguous girls – so it may well have seemed difficult to numerous that a potent person these as Westwood could need these dim-skinned women of all ages. Maybe it was the presumed undesirability of dim-skinned ladies that authorized him to allegedly go after them in a covert fashion, with no alarm bells ringing. In the meantime, the fetishisation and hypersexualisation of Black women flourished on his demonstrates – as it does elsewhere in a society in which the mere expression of our sexuality is viewed as an invitation. In 2016, Cardi B was a visitor on his YouTube channel, TimWestoodTV. When she requested “do you have intercourse with a whole lot of Black gals?” he responded “not as substantially as I’d like to … but we could rectify that”.
Whilst #MeToo and #Time’sUp felt like moments of actual accountability for lecherous gentlemen, the movements felt whitewashed. Meanwhile Tarana Burke’s many years-very long get the job done with survivors of sexual abuse, during which she originated the phrase Me Far too, went uncredited.
It is tough to notify whether there has been considerable transform in the tunes field. Regardless of confidential discussions between ourselves, females are continue to unwilling to speak out about the sexual inappropriateness they’ve faced, not only for concern of not currently being considered, but for their employment. On the rare situations that they do report their accounts, non-disclosure agreements can even more silence them. This is what helps make the recorded testimonies of these Black women so profound the hope is that they will split by the wall of silence that shields alleged abusers within just the audio marketplace.
The restrictions that #MeToo exposed likely led to a greater knowing of the complexity of issues that affect Black gals – and it absolutely feels as if there are additional mild-skinned and white individuals who want to be improved allies. But it is imperative that ladies of all races and shades band together since the hypervisibility of dim-skinned Black women, of whom there are so couple in general public lifestyle, leaves them especially exposed to racism and misogyny.
Black musicians are beginning to find their voice in tackling this. Not too long ago the singer Ari Lennox was questioned “is somebody fucking you fantastic proper now?” by a South African radio broadcaster. She visibly recoiled and questioned: “Why check with it in that way?” In the earlier, a Black female could have felt the require to parry this variety of issue the way Cardi B did with Westwood, but, by reacting in the way that she did, Lennox was ready to established an illustration that our boundaries are to be revered.
Malcolm X as soon as stated: “The most disrespected female in The usa is the Black lady.” This is continue to relevant now, and further than America. It’s promising that Westwood has stepped down from his slot at Cash Xtra right until further detect, but there is nevertheless a extensive way to go. By “protect Black women”, we imply shield us all – not just the ones we’re taught to believe are deserving.
