July 29, 2026 by Cassandra Johnson
Gaslighting and deflecting:
This is what Argentina has been doing. This is what the people have chosen to do, in a post-World Cup that has exposed them more globally, revealing something that I and many of us have long known. They are a country with a system steeped in racism.
They worked diligently to erase the descendants of slaves in an unjust country. They are a nation that sacrificed many in and out of the country’s wars, and among the rest of their population, they disappeared people and overran civil rights.
There is no surprise as well, after sowing a great amount of control and corruption throughout the US government and backing JD Vance, that the billionaire Peter Thiel, has also taken refuge there. It very much fits his element and a calling to a place that would cradle his desired comfort.
I am reminded of parallels more recently, and how Jay Z has extended his fall from my admiration, knowing now it was an admiration born more from a surface knowledge and dancing in those times during the breaks from the demands of my Ohio State university life, when once upon a time, I also attended his Blueprint concert. They say “Never meet your heroes”, and I optimistically don’t think that is always the case but in this instance, it has just taken getting to know him more and more. Not necessarily a hero, he was more someone from whom I derived inspiration or simply enjoyed. In this latest iteration of him casting aspersions on someone that gives us hope (Colin Kaepernick) and also casting judgment on everyday people for successfully executing a boycott that has reiterated our own power, I am left with not just bewilderment but a matching disappointment.
We should not be deterred from trying to do anything, just because we cannot do everything. Though Jay Z seemingly would have you do just that when it comes to his business, this is not a reason for us to simply not even try, or a reason for us to wildly support those who work towards our ruin. I write this to underscore how Jay Z just reinforced the disillusion I had in his intentions for our community.
I had been unaware of the role he played in upending Colin’s actions and additionally distracted by performances I have enjoyed at the Superbowl, under his management. I learned these past details as I was currently surprised by a recent re-release album deal he struck exclusively with Target. He could have opted not to say anything. People still celebrate and enjoy him.
Yet, he said something.
I worked for Target years ago and likewise enjoyed shopping there before making the personal decision that this was something I could easily protest, when the boycott began. I also would not fault anyone for making a variety of choices, based on the circumstances and resources available to them and according to the items, services and work they need to support their lives and families. I do not see Jay Z as wanting for anything, and if he had said nothing instead of trying to disparage others with so much less power and money than him, I would not have felt so disillusioned.
He chose this freestyle tactic of: don’t fault me, you are all hypocrites because you don’t shop there but you still shop at Amazon, you don’t like Facebook but, guess what you still use Meta, et cetera, et cetera. I am loosely referencing his freestyle that included an insult to Colin and further, to us. What a thud, as if not being able to protest all things means you cannot protest one. It is as if not being able to limit one activity, (at least in the short one) means you cannot start somewhere. I would feel less interrupted if he had a greater strategy for his deals, made a misstep, had an apology, or at least just chose not to insult others. He did the opposite.
I was left with a poor taste in my mouth from the antics of this month, especially when we do not need to be criticizing people for wanting to do meaningful things and we do not need to be criticizing people who have it on their heart to try. Should we not try to be better for ourselves and others? Should we not aspire? I do not want to resign myself and give up on any of us. I do not want to let the days fall to this way of thinking nor to caring less for our world.
