Student Submission CUNY Hunter College Spring 2025

The picture provided is one of Michelle Obama being depicted as an ape. A common insult rooted in pseudo-science pertaining to the black race. Academia was once impermeable for the black community, and it is still unfathomable for some to perceive black women as intellectuals, educated, and worthy. Black women are no longer just qualified to play the role of slaves or the mammy or the hypersexualized Jezebel. Still, when a black woman of class full wisdom and who is also the first lady of the United States of America has not played the perpetuated role of the stereotypical black woman… she must is dehumanized because how can a black woman possibly be so educated? How can she compare or dare to compete against a white woman and the first ladies that occupied the white house before her? Her words and thoughts were so impactful that another first lady would plagiarize an entire speech written by her, but the words of a black woman are muted, and oftentimes the voice of another race is heard. The graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law couldn’t be insulted on her intelligence, so they had to compare her to an ape.