Weird Revelations of Having a Tweet Go Viral

Today, I had a Tweet go viral.

Weirdest thing ever.

For one, I was speaking on something I thought most folks knew about, namely the massive fallout that was the Kardashians, namely Khloe with the backing of Kim, accused youngest Jenner, Kylie's best friend of the time, Jordyn of cheating with Khloe's ex, Tristan Thompson.

Whew, that was a lot, even for me to write. It's all TV drama. But many of us tuned in, whether directly watching the show or like I did, reading articles after the fact (because I personally lack the headspace for drama TV. No judgment.)

Following all of the fallout, many like me who saw past the irony of Kardashians calling folks out for supposed cheating when a few of them have been caught in their own cheating scandals to see the more problematic point: This moment right here when Kim let these words fall out of her mouth.


Mind you, Jordyn is wealthy as well. She had money long before meeting a Kardashian or Jenner. But this comment wasn't about money. It was about how Kim really feels about Kylie's friendship with Jordyn. It was revelatory. It was probably the most honest Kim has ever been. It shows how she really feels about all of the Black folk surrounding her; that she, a white woman, was somehow saving them, rescuing them from some sad life of desolation that their Blackness somehow confines them to.

It was then when I really started paying attention to this whole debacle, choosing to root for the little Black girl, Jordyn, who at the time had 30+-year-old grown women on her for a nonissue. A kiss from an ex of her best friend's sister, which resulted in a long-standing friendship ruined, Jordyn thrown into a social media storm, her and her family receiving not just vitriol, but death threats.

Since the fallout, it appears both parties are doing well. Since the split, new relationships have been fostered, new opportunities have been established, new lives lived.

Fast forward to today, and the news all over Twitter that Khloe is quarantining with Tristan Thompson, despite all of last year's drama and fallout. Twitter went up, many of us commenting on the attempted slut-shaming campaign that almost ruined a person's life that happened less than 12 months ago.

So I shared the following:

So here are a few revelations I had after my tweet went viral:

No one puts out a random thought expecting it to go viral:
I tweet every day. I have tweeted thousands of times. Shooting a tweet out into the Twitterverse is nothing new. What is new is virality. No one who sends a random thought into the social media abyss expects it to impact so many people. Now suddenly, the cascade of internet conversation is pointed in my direction, with various opinions, reactions, even insults being flung my way. And for what, sharing a random thought? Stating a fact; that Jordyn is better off without the drama machine that is the Kardashian Jenner Family? Feels sort of overrated.

I never realized how many Black people actually go up for this family:
After this tweet got a little bit of traction, my notifications were filled with all sorts of reactions, but the messages that surprised me most were the accusations of jealousy.
First, imagine, I, an authentic born Black woman, the blueprint, being jealous of a family who, at best is an imitation, through attempts and Black affiliation with Black besties or Black romantic partners (which at one point, each member of this family had, oddly), whether association through photo ops or straight-up appropriation. Nope, I woke up with these full lips and fuller hips and this culture of mine.
Secondly, why is that the 1st thought folks run to when someone is critical of this family. That we couldn't possibly have valid and thought out criticisms, that absolutely must be jealousy. I will take my quiet writer's life over the space they occupy any day. As Jordyn Woods said herself: "I dont want your life."
Thirdly, imagine caping for a family who has done nothing but become famous due to their proximity to Blackness. Rather than supporting our own, we will gladly run to throw our support and affiliation to whiteness, even if its a vapid and void family who immerses themselves in scandal and found fame from biting off of Black Culture. It's hella confusing.

A lot of people have a problem with complementing Black Women:
More than once, people replied to my Tweet, calling out my focus on Black friendship, as if it was a problem. Let me say this: The growth this young woman experienced out of the shadows of that family is more than noticeable, its tangible. But, of course, the above crowd and others, despite this tangible growth, have a problem with even mentioning the obvious.
As a Black woman who has experienced the power, encouragement, inspiration, and life-giving thrive that is Black Friendship, I can honestly say there is nothing like it. Black Women are dope friends. Despite how society tries to pit us against one another, Black women will challenge you, amplify you, cuss you out and cook you a plate, will tell you all about yourself, and love you back from dark places. So of course, I am going to mention the difference between Joydyn's friendship with Kylie, where she was relagated to a sidekick to now where she shines on her own.

So moral of the whole story: That family is still an enigma, I'm still Team Jordyn, Black friendships are dope, Black Women are still the blueprint, and social media is so weird.
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