HOW SOCIAL MEDIA WEAPONIZES GENDER, CLASS & COLOR AGAINST US...
Algorithmic Amplification of Conflict
Social media platforms use algorithms that prioritize controversial and divisive content because it drives engagement. In the Black community, posts that pit genders, classes, or skin tones against each other are boosted—framing conflict as the norm.
Gender War Narratives
Posts and discussions that pit Black men against Black women (e.g., “Who has it harder?” “Who’s more loyal?”) flourish because they provoke emotion and reaction, furthering alienation between the two pillars of the community.
Weaponized Insecurities
Many of us carry insecurities tied to past traumas—poverty, broken homes, abandonment, colorism—and these are exploited online. Memes and posts often target these sore spots, pushing emotional triggers that foster division.
The “High-Value” Conversation
Online discussions about who’s “high-value” based on income or social status promote classism. Instead of encouraging collective advancement, they encourage individualism and elitism within the community.
Colorism Revisited
Light skin vs. dark skin debates are kept alive as content creators repost old wounds. Instead of healing, such tactics ensure continuous internal resentment, inhibiting unity.
Black Women as Trends, Not People
“Soft life,” “divine feminine,” and “boss chick” narratives are marketed as empowerment, but often disguise capitalist and patriarchal ideals that ultimately separate the genders and reinforce unrealistic standards.
Exoticism and Outsider Validation
Viral content promoting non-Black relationships or praising ethnicity over unity causes subtle emotional rifts, altering perceptions of self-worth and desirability within the community.
The “Bullet-Point Prophet” Phenomenon
Influencers post simplistic “solutions” to complex community problems. These one-liners are often divisive and lack nuance, yet they circulate as gospel because they validate pre-existing pain points.
Mockery Culture
Laughter is used as a weapon. Skits and memes mocking unemployed men, “gold-digger” women, darker skin tones, or poverty condition us to ridicule rather than understand struggling members of our own community.
Class Flexing and Performative Wealth
The flaunting of luxury lifestyles online feeds materialism and jealousy, pitting those with means against those without—turning former neighbors into invisible enemies.
False Empowerment Archetypes
The “strong Black woman” and the “alpha Black man” are circulated as ideal but are actually traps. These archetypes restrict emotional vulnerability and encourage unrealistic expectations.
Trauma Bonding Through Toxicity
Trending relationship debates often revolve around toxicity. This normalizes unhealthy dynamics and fosters ongoing mistrust between genders.
Anti-Intellectualism via Clout
Deep thought and nuanced conversation are drowned out by sensationalism. People who play into harmful stereotypes are rewarded, while intellectual or united voices are suppressed.
Selective Outrage
Outrage content manipulates emotion. We are guided to be angry at each other for small things while ignoring larger systemic threats.
The Myth of “Making It Out”
Social media glorifies individual success stories (celebs, influencers) while ignoring collective progress. This fuels envy and discourages grassroots cooperation.
Divide-and-Conquer Messaging
Subtle phrases like “These new Black men…” or “Black women today…” generalize small experiences to entire genders and reinforce stereotypes.
Perception Shaping Through Virality
The images and videos that go viral are not random—they are selected and pushed because they reinforce agendas that break down community trust and connection.
Micro-Dosing Mistrust
While scrolling, users are fed tiny, repeated doses of mistrust—stories of betrayal, infidelity, scams. Over time, this shapes a worldview where community members are automatically seen as suspects, not allies.
Relatability as a Trojan Horse
Content creators appear “real” and “authentic,” but many are paid to push narratives that destabilize group cohesion by constantly highlighting internal problems rather than promoting healing.
Desensitization to Pain and Division
Repeated exposure to harmful narratives causes numbness, making it harder to detect manipulation. The more division we see, the more normal it feels, conditioning us to accept it as reality.
