Gather ’round and I’ll tell you a story of a time I was rejected from a Facebook group. Yes, I am serious. Person “Y” from group “X X” writes:

 

“Hi Jen, First, we would like to thank you for your interest in joining “x x”. However, after careful review of your channel we have decided that we cannot accept you at this time. This is due to the fact that you have only recently began making videos again after a long hiatus. All of our members are consistent content creators and we believe it would be unfair to ask them to support someone who has not yet shown the same commitment. If you wish to, you can try uploading at a more consistent rate and then reapply to join after a month or so, we would be happy to have you. Thanks and have a great day. “

 

My initial thought was to laugh. Wow, for a Facebook group, though? I was then met with mixed emotions of anger and disappointment. How audacious. This cut below being a member of a corny Facebook group at this point. I could care less about joining this group. This was a blow to my dedication and my craft. Who are you to question my commitment? You don’t know how hard I work, and how much time I invest into my work. I’ll be damned if anyone were to question my loyalty and commitment to what I do. Are you serious? You don’t know the reasons for my “long hiatus.” You don’t know what I could have learned or taught a fellow creative, by joining this “group.” You don’t know me.

Truly this is what it looks like when supporting black business goes wrong. What if I were a blogger/vlogger/writer just starting out and I was looking for support? Where is the sense of unity or comradery? Why wasn’t my black community supporting me? “…we have decided that we cannot accept you at this time.” But you pride yourself on being a group that supports Black content creators, right? Eye. Opening. Experience.

I am so happy that God chose to shield me from the foolery that is this group. I see this as nothing more than a reminder that not everyone wants to see everyone to winning.