Okay so as I wait for my computer to reboot, I’m going to go ahead and start this thread.

I came across Cleaver Magazine’s new issue (and don’t worry, I WILL tag them in this thread). Almost immediately, it caught my eye. For multiple reasons. https://www.cleavermagazine.com/ 

To be quite honest, it took me a minute to recover from the use of “Nappy Valley,” but we’ll get to that in a second.

So this is supposed to be a special “Rise Up” issue. The cover is a wine label which was in part created by a Black woman. The label itself is discussing

how people of color only wanted to be acknowledged in the White wine industry. So I find it INCREDIBLY IRONIC that this “Rise Up” is in turn filled with white creatives.

I find that this issue is an example of a more predatory practice that I think is on the rise, in which journals use the idea of a “Black issue” or an issue that is meant to “highlight BIPOC voices” as a lure for readership. It’s this insidious brand of allyship and amplification

that ends up being hollow, as journals will then not give BIPOC creatives an actual seat at the table.

What a CHOICE to have a cover written by a Black woman (with a phrase like “Nappy Valley” on it) to then to only have 2 out of 25 pieces by Black creatives in the actual issue.

Why brand the issue this way if you weren’t going to actually give BIPOC the space? It seems incredibly and intentionally misleading.

I kid you not, the words on the cover label, VERBATIM:

“To be acknowledged and included in this White wine industry is all people of color have ever wanted.”

Then for the issue NOT to be inclusive feels grimy. Almost as if you used this sentiment as bait.

The masthead for this publication is quite sizeable, and also, quite white. I could chalk this up as oversight, but it’s a much larger issue, which is the lack of diversity on mastheads and editorial boards and positions of power.

I find it alarming that no one saw an issue

with this at any point, on any level.

All of this to say, this is ridiculous, and this is cringe-worthy and disappointing. You can’t slap a Reparations wine label on the cover of your “Rise Up” issue and put two things by Black creatives in the issue and think that’s all the diversity you need.

@CleaverMagazine