America is a shitshow

Published in

ZORA

4 min readOct 8, 2020

ZORA Fam,

Welp. We got the first (maybe only) coherent debate in this election cycle and it was still a mess. Senator Kamala Harris and Vice President Mike Pence may have had their shit together, but I’m more convinced than ever that America is still a shit show.

Early on in the debate, Kamala looked directly into the camera and asked the American people “How calm are you?” Sis, I am anything but calm right now! I sat and listened to the Vice President tell lies about the Trump administration’s response to the coronavirus. I heard him imply that racial bias in our police force is a myth. I watched him brush off the president’s refusal to condemn white supremacy like it never happened.

*screams internally and externally.*

I know despite all of the lies he told on stage last night, Pence is right about one thing: Trump has mobilized a group of Americans who are going to try to re-elect him. He’s not wrong and that scares me more than anything. Because it’s not Pence or Trump we have to beat. To truly make America less shitty, we have to change the minds of the millions of people who think the way that Trump and Pence do. We have to take the power back and give it to the people who need it most.

➡️ READ: Kamala Harris Spoke the Truth: They’re Coming for Us

Moderator Susan Page closed out the debate with a question from an 8th grader asking how we can trust the candidates when they’re always fighting. Cute question, but I got news for you, little girl: We’re fighting because we have to. We fight because we’re in the actual fight for our lives. We fight for the dignity of women, of people of color, of immigrants, of poor people, of sick people, of the American people who have been forgotten under this administration and the administrations of America’s past.

We have to fight for the change we want to see. So vote! Vote like your life depends on it, because it does.

Do what you gotta do,
Jolie A. Doggett, ZORA platform editor

📚Love to read? Keep your eyes on ZORA’s IG tomorrow for a book club announcement! 📚

Zero to 💯

Who kept it 100 this week? Let’s take a look.

November cover girls taking over newsstands: 💯/💯
Mainstream magazines are coming through with stunning covers with some of our faves including Angelica Ross, Serena Williams, Normani, Gabrielle Union, and Kelly Rowland who announced her second pregnancy on the cover of Women’s Health. Congrats ladies!

Rihanna’s Savage x Fenty fashion show: 90 /💯
We loved the looks, music, models and diversity in Rihanna’s second fashion show for her lingerie line. We even love the singer-mogul’s honest apology to Muslim fans who called her out for the use of Islamic verses during the show. Well-handled.

Noname rhyming over a Jay Electronica beat 💯/💯
The rapper shared a cold verse calling out capitalism and how we treat poor people. She tells us “a radical in the jungle is patient about her timing.” Noname always has bars.

Black women across literature and music earn MacArthur Grants 💯/💯
Major props to authors Tressie McMillan Cottom, Jaqueline Woodson, and N.K. Jemison and musician Cécile McLorin Salvant who are among the 21 grant recipients. Each will receive a $625,000 grant — no strings attached.

Kentucky Attorney General calling Meg Thee Stallion’s SNL performance “disgusting”: 🚮/💯
Apparently, Daniel Cameron didn’t take kindly to the rapper’s use of audio critiquing him for supporting the police after the shooting of Breonna Taylor. You know what is disgusting? The fact that Breonna still hasn’t gotten justice. We want to see more done to protect our women.