Nov 20, 2019
I found myself searching for multiple words I associate my own blog with to no avail — I searched for some time on the “commodification of the African aesthetic” until I realized that the core of my questions and issues don’t need to be as specified. I began the search again instead with the much more simple “systematic racism” and “appropriation” That’s when I found Spectra — a fierce Nigerian blogger who knows what the world needs. I began to devour her work and learned about just who exactly Spectra is.
She co-founded a radio and podcast called QWOC (Queer Women of Color) that allowed a new platform for a severely underrated group. She also reflects on many different discussions she has fueled throughout different educational settings throughout her blog and website.
There’s a sense of female empowerment throughout her writings that really struck me as being worthwhile to dig further into. In the first blog of her’s I read she discussed the movie Carol and her thoughts on how similar the homophobic experience is on any continent. I saw here her voice and that there was a direct relation to the issues she expressed interest in and who she identified as.
Spectra is a strong and powerful feminist who views the word not only as a person of color but also a member of the LGBT community. I think that using the experiences we have had in our past makes us in our own sense reliable narrators to a certain point. If you are a woman speaking on your own personal experience, no one can take that from you — although many people may try.
Spectra’s ability to effortlessly weave issues with personal stories also really struck me. In reading another one of her blogs about the casting of a movie about Nina Simone there is an effortlessness in which she mentions a New York Times article she was interviewed for, Spectra makes herself relatable and yet propels her ethos immediately.
There is another overarching theme that I myself struggle with — hope. There is a lot of hope in Spectra’s writing — about a better tomorrow, people changing , and the possibility of a better future. I find myself holding on to many doubts about people’s intentions that I often turn bitter. It was nice to see someone grapple with such serious topics like appropriation and homophobia while still holding any shred of optimism for the future. She is also very rightfully proud of her African heritage and consistently uses a term I had never heard before. “Afrofeminism” refers to a subset of feminist specifically involved in and fighting for the rights of African women around the world.
I enjoyed that I could learn multiple new things without feeling as if I was being forced a lesson, her style was breezy yet educated — my favorite.
Her actual site has roughly about 100–200 visitors a month, although those numbers spike whenever a new post is uploaded. These posts occur roughly often, being posted on Medium about every 2–6 months and her personal website spectraspeaks.com roughly every 6–8 months. Although there is a lot of crossover it is also nice to see that each blog has its own identity. Her website has much more about her journey, ways to contact, and how to get her books and other articles. Her Medium page allows for more open ended discussions and a broader sense on topics that can be discussed with or without the “face” behind them.
Since 2008 Spectra has been bridging topics that are often considered to be too much to handle and can lead to people deciding they will dismiss an entire idea based on who stated it.
Unfortunately, although there is a contact me option on her website and some responses on Twitter, there are no comments available. Spectra actively hold a policy that her beliefs are not meant to “spark verbal riots” so she has disabled any and all comments from all platforms. Through Medium each of her posts get on average only a couple claps but she has a couple hundred followers on all platforms. Overall, her activism and unapologetic outspokenness really drew me in, I have found myself a subscriber to Spectra on multiple accounts and look forward to continuing to see what she produces!
