By Latasha McGill
When I was younger, being put on a pedestal was negatively associated with being “stuck up, full of yourself, bougie” and other negative connotations. After all, black women were taught to accept the accolades we were given without requiring more; such as being warrior women who take care of the home, kids, work two plus jobs and make a dollar out of fifteen cents when our men left us, society rejected us, and the rest of the world were afraid and/or hated us.
Today’s new mantra for black women is “adjusting our crowns.” And, that is great because our crowns have been shifted, sometimes hanging on by a thread, knocked off, torn, worn down and at times, non-existent. So, adjusting them back to their original state of authenticity to fit our queenship makes sense by all accounts. However, what about our pedestals? We deserve and desire to be put on pedestals as well. Just because we want to be put on a pedestal doesn’t mean we are less deserving of our crowns, love, respect or compassion. The truth is, my pedestal is not the same as my best friend’s or my sister’s or my coworker’s. My pedestal is designed by me, enforced by me and developed by me.
The concept of a pedestal becomes a problem with some people when we start acknowledging that we want to be on one, when we want others to recognize our demand for it and we exude the confidence of a woman who isn’t afraid to say, “I want, need and deserve to be put on a pedestal.” Sister, your pedestal equates to your worthiness. Don’t water it down, dumb it down, or shove it in the back of the closet to appease society. Whatever your pedestal looks like for you, you are worthy to have that platform because I can almost assure you that we’ve earned the right to be put on one and raised on it in high regard.
Black women deal with colorism, sexism, racism, and every other negative -ism there is while raising children, getting an education, running a household and a laundry list of other tasks while we sometimes struggle to maintain our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health. It’s not easy to manage all of that; and yet, we do, and look fabulous doing it as we stand at the intersection of our greatness and purpose. So, you think you don’t deserve to be put on a pedestal? We do the unthinkable, overcome every obstacle and make the impossible happen for ourselves and our loved ones daily. Not only should we be on pedestals, but we should also be on pedestals trimmed in gold with wheels of grace and mercy attached to them.
Sister, if you have people in your circle who frown at the thought of you being on a pedestal, then you should re-evaluate their purpose for being in your life. Every queen should sit on a pedestal; it’s up to you to decide what that looks like for you.
#WholePersonHealthy
Latasha “Tasha Mac” McGill is a contributing writer for the Pedestal Project, LLC.
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