(Trice Edney Wire) – Search this hashtag: #FirstN—aTo- on one of the popular media sites such as Instagram or Twitter and be prepared for a Black History Month shock.
Posts have flooded the internet and social media sites with fictional – and even stereotypical – messages pertaining to the African-American community. Such posts include, but are not limited to, a picture of a baby named Lester J. Green being attributed as the first Black kid to have a light bill in his name; a young man, Claude Malvoux, relaxing in a chair being attributed as the first Black man to extend his break 30 minutes; and “Eddie Jones” as being the first Black man to say “lemme hold sumn.”
Ironically, the controversial memes are often being posted by African-Americans. The question that comes into play here is are these memes funny or offensive? Do they degrade Black History Month – and Black history overall – or do they bring a lighter balance to the standard Black history learnings of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Malcom X, and Harriet Tubman?
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