Kern Carter's Blog, page 129
January 15, 2021
Is censorship stifling creativity?
With all the conversation about censorship dominating the political world, we wanted to discuss what censorship means for creatives. As writers and artists, our goal is to express ourselves as honestly as possible. Being censored is like creating within a boundary, and if we didn’t build that boundary ourselves, we’re at the mercy of these walls which are defined by something outside of our own imaginations.
CRY takes on this topic in an article by Kern Carter:
How Censorship Will Hurt Writers and Artists
We also had another incredible week of content. Debdutta wrote about “How to Write When You’re Disconnected From Yourself” and everyone sure is ready to get the new U.S President and Vice President inaugurated.
The year is off to one heck of a start, but if 2020 did anything, it prepared us for chaos. We’ll get through, but what will we look like on the other side?
CRY
Is censorship stifling creativity? was originally published in CRY Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
January 13, 2021
To 2020: I heard you loud and clear.
Photo by Joshua Abner on Pexels.comRemember that old York Peppermint Patty commercial where the woman split open a peppermint patty, bit it, and the camera zoomed in on her goosebumps, as the chill of the peppermint took over her senses?
A few mornings ago, I woke up with one of those excruciating morning headaches where I either had a nightmare, or had a hard sleep, and woke up sweating with my head pounding like it was connected directly to my heart. I was so hot, even though I don’t sleep in anything more than a t-shirt. I probably had experienced a nightmare or went to sleep with something heavy on my mind. So, I sat up, looked at the clock on my wall, and saw it was only 6:30, meaning I had a few hours before I had to start work. I didn’t even pick up my phone, I just got up and walked out to my porch, no jacket on whatsoever, 30 degree weather and all. Just me and the sunrise
Peppermint patty, what?! My headache went anyway (I obviously didn’t feel hot anymore, either); my skin, raised and prickly with goosebumps, felt alive. The air didn’t feel nearly as thick and stagnant. Mother nature herself had cured me. No Tylenol required.
I’m not sure if anyone else noticed this, but unless I’m trippin’, this year is the first normal year weather-wise— or as close as you can get to ‘normal’ in a 21st century climate—I’ve experienced in a very long time (speaking as a person in the southeastern region of the U.S) Why do I think that? Because 2020 has been the first abnormal year in recent world history for humans and also, because of this abnormality, we had to keep our entitled behinds home, which meant less cars on the road, subsequently emitting less carbon dioxide into the air (any scientists reading this, feel free to correct me on my terminology). Again, this is my opinion.
2020, I heard you loud and clear — every day is precious and God is in complete control.
Now, I’m not trying to preach to anyone. I believe everyone is entitled to their own beliefs but something — whether you believe it to be science or a theological entity being, spirit, or idea — is up there reminding every single one of us as human beings, that we are not in control. I mean, we all know the world is crazy enough as it is, but for the completely random series of events to occur back to back to back, as if they were on some demonic loop, like they did this year, it has to mean something. If nothing but, it’s been a complete peppermint patty.
We don’t own this world. We can’t control our tomorrow. We can’t erase the past. What happened has happened, and contrary to popular belief, sometimes you can’t just move on and forget; sometimes you have to face what’s right in front of you, stop trying to deny it, and then move forward.
Here’s what brought me back to my senses, and gave me goosebumps this year:
and racism is very real.
Homophobia and transphobia are real.
Mental health is just as important as physical health.
Our planet is dying and is crying out for help.
Women are equal to men, end of story.
White privilege is a thing, not just a theory.
America is not perfect, just like any other continent isn’t perfect.
You are not perfect.
I am not perfect.
We are imperfect.
It is okay to be imperfect.
But it is no longer okay to just sit back and actively act on that imperfection. Every day is a blessing and is an opportunity to do better; to be better. I hate cliches, but dang it, sometimes they’re true:
Tell the people you value and cherish that you love them every single day. Admit when you’re wrong, even when it hurts your pride. It’s okay to be ignorant of a certain kind of person, place, idea, or thing, but take every day as an opportunity to learn something new to combat that ignorance. Pay it forward and do one kind act a day, even something as small as telling someone you like their shirt; because you never know how impactful those three simple words will be to them.
Also, it’s okay to have a bad day. It’s okay to cry. It’s okay to get overwhelmed and be upset and not agree with someone, but don’t take your own personal frustrations out on other people just because you refuse to be wrong or accept defeat. There’s a huge difference between general discord and complete disregard for other people’s feelings or beliefs because you’re too self-absorbed to see past yourself.
We are all born and one day we will all die, these two things are certain. But while we’ve got breath in our lungs we can try and do everything we can to be the best we can be while we’re alive.
It is okay to be imperfect, but always strive to be better.
2020, I heard you loud and clear. This my little personal letter to myself and I won’t ever forget you. How could I? You woke me up like a peppermint patty and I see in complete 20/20 now. Thanks for the headache and the wake up call.
To 2020: I heard you loud and clear. was originally published in CRY Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
January 12, 2021
January 11, 2021
Is The Kamala Harris and Vogue Controversy Bullshit?
Over the weekend, Black Twitter went into a bit of a rage over the Kamala Harris cover on Vogue. Many didn’t feel it told the story or captured the importance of the moment. Others thought the pic was just plain bad.
The fact that a Black photographer shot these images only complicated the matter. We write about whether or not Black people are overexaggerating the situation or if we actually have reasons to be upset. Here’s an excerpt:
“Part of it just the nature of social media. People can get into a huff about whatever they want and when you pair two industries as powerful and fashion and politics together, there’s bound to be some strong opinions.
The other part is that Black people are not compromising on how we are represented. If it’s not up to our expectations and doesn’t accurately reflect our true superpowers, we’ll have something to say. And not only that, we want you to do something about it.”
Check out the full story posted this morning in CRY Magazine:
The Kamala Harris Vogue Cover Means Nothing and Everything by Kern Carter
Image by Tyler Mitchell for Vogue Magazine
Is The Kamala Harris and Vogue Controversy Bullshit? was originally published in CRY Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
The Kamala Harris Vogue Cover is Nothing and Everything
How does what is essentially a bad picture cause so much uproar? Because both Vogue and Kamala Harris represent a greater story.
January 8, 2021
A New Year Is Just Another Day
Image by Kern and Krystasia CarterI’m always cautious not to put too many expectations on the turn of the year. I know it’s a milestone that presents itself as the ideal time to reset your life, but the truth is that really is just another day.
The chaos of this past week is proof of that.
The universe doesn’t care about our resolutions. When the clocks rolled past midnight, it took away lives as routinely as it gave birth to new ones. Any challenges we had the day before still need to be overcome just as any dream still needs to be achieved.
We are creatures conditioned for purpose. We need reasons to open our eyes every morning and motivation to take on each day. A new year is like a gift we wait nearly 400 days to open hoping it will give us that thing we need to keep going.
My message is that you be careful. It is us who gives time a watch and days their names and years their significance. Those labels only matter because we want them to. Where you can take solace is in knowing you have the power to create your own story and that power is in you every single day.
Grab hold of that energy and harness it to live the way you imagine. Release the pressure from the new year and free yourself from those expectations.
A New Year Is Just Another Day was originally published in CRY Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
