For years, the Twitterverse was ruled by quick-witted humor, searing commentary, and social justice movements galvanized in real-time by Black Twitter. However, under the leadership of the world’s richest man, many users and employees of the platform say the best days of the forum are likely behind it.
In remembrance of better times, here is a mashup of the most epic challenges, movement-making hashtags, and purely hilarious moments from the golden era of Black Twitter.
#GrowingUpBlack: Of course, Black culture is far from monolithic, but this hashtag confirms the undeniable commonalities of what it’s like growing up in Black households around the globe.
#OscarsSoWhite: Fed up with the routine exclusion of performances of Black actors by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, April Reign vented her frustrations using hashtag #OscarsSoWhite. The hashtag started a much-needed conversation, and the movement it created influenced The Academy to double its number of women and minority members.
#MannequinChallenge: This epic trend will forever be frozen in time.
#AskRachel: In 2015, when Rachel Dolezal, then president of her local NAACP chapter, was outed as a white woman after spending her career cosplaying as a Black woman, Black Twitter lost its collective mind. This resulted in a series of quizzes to “ask Rachel” in order to confirm her self-proclaimed blackness.
#SoGoneChallenge: In 2016, Black Twitter randomly blessed the timeline with this gem. Users laid tracks over the beat of Monica’s 2003 R&B classic, “So Gone,” produced and co-written by Missy Elliot.
#PaulasBestDishes: In 2013, celeb chef Paula Deen found herself in hot water after a former employee filed suit accusing the southern cook of racial discrimination. When word got out that Deen hosted an antebellum-themed event with black servers dressed as enslaved people, @BrokeyMcPoverty and @Jeffuhz decided to turn Paula’s racist lemons into sweet southern lemonade. Black Twitter responded with a hilarious menu.
#BlackGirlMagic: In 2013, CaShawn Thompson coined the phrase “Black Girls are Magic,” later shortened to Black Girl Magic. Nine years later, #BlackGirlMagic remains a celebration of the beauty, creativity, and “magic” of Black women and girls.
#BeyonceAlwaysOnBeat: I mean—self-explanatory. Throw Bey on any beat, and she’s going to be on. The queen doesn’t miss.
#BlackLivesMatter: Started by Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi, #BlackLivesMatter was created in response to the 2013 acquittal of George Zimmerman for the murder of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin. What began as a response to police violence against Black communities has become an international movement.
They say all good things come to an end, but shoutout to all these magic moments. #BlackTwitter is the real MVP.
Twitter influencer @sheistyler contributed to assembling this list.
