#MNR: Keep Ya Head Up

#MNR: Keep Ya Head Up

“And since we all came from a woman, got our name from a woman, and our game from a woman. I wonder why we take from our women, why we rape our women, do we hate our women?”
Tupac Shakur

I’ve been following the perils of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, son of former Gov. Mario Cuomo and older brother of CNN on-air personality Chris Cuomo. He is an eleven-year incumbent, elected in 2010 amidst the great recession that plagued the second term of former President George W. Bush. Cuomo first grabbed my attention politically with his no corporate tax for ten years for new business legislation, aimed directly at attracting new business to bolster a state economy ravaged by recession. As a native New Yorker, I immediately thought of the allure of new business in NYC, mostly retail and food. But I also had enough awareness to realize that this initiative could prove to be lucrative for all of NY, from Niagara Falls to the Roc to Buffalo to Cooperstown to Albany to Poughkeepsie to Y-O to Now Rule to Harlem to Syosset to Amityville to Bridgehampton to everywhere in between. I thought of the tech industry, how maybe this initiative could at least steal 15% of new business flocking to the Silicon Valley. I also thought of the fledgling green initiative (environmental business) potentially having a positive and significant impact on the empire state. To me (from a business standpoint), NY was a blank canvas and Cuomo was Bob Ross. The possibilities were endless.

Cuomo hasn’t been a Madden/2K 99 overall rating as governor, more like a smooth 91 or so. He hasn’t been squeaky clean, but until recently he’s remained largely unscathed. As expected, COVID hit NYC like a Tyson 1-2-1. It ravaged nursing homes. Numbers were grim (oh the irony). But Cuomo (seemingly) stood tall. He went toe-to-toe with tRump and didn’t even need to see his cut man between rounds. NY took the first major hit (watching news reports showing the trailers acting as makeshift morgues outside hospitals was a somber sight), but swift action helped numbers to fall exponentially. Cuomo received a lion’s share of the praise, even being hailed as “America’s Governor.” Not many (self-included) objected. But things change.
America has recently learned that Cuomo “juked” the data on COVID-related mortality rates of nursing home residents, to the point that even Deputy of Operations Rawls and Commissioner Burrell would blush (IYKYK). He even got my homegirl Tish James on his ass (New York State Attorney General Letitia James, I call her TiTi). As shitty as that is (smh), it ain’t the only blues he’s singing. America’s Mayor is also knee-deep in sexual harassment allegations, two to be exact. One claim is from former aide Lindsey Boylan. The other is from Charlotte Bennett, a 25-year-old executive assistant. I’m gon park the truck right there. Take the time to roll up if need be. I’m finna kick ass until both Foamposites turn shitty.

Boylan has accused the governor of making her feel uncomfortable through insensitive and “crude” comments and inquiries, including joking about playing strip poker. She also alleged Cuomo of giving her an unsolicited kiss on the lips. Bennett, who I will repeat is 25, accuses the governor of asking deeply personal questions during conversations. These conversations included a previous incident of sexual assault and whether she dated or would date older men. Gov. Cuomo shared that he was absolutely fine with dating anyone over 22. Andrew Cuomo is 63. I reiterate that none of these allegations have been substantiated. There has been no litigation. And to the uncouth, this seems to be nothing out of bounds. But the devil is a liar.

This is not a blog or forum to disgrace Gov. Cuomo. In the eyes of the law, he’s of yet done nothing illegal. In the eyes of politics, his next primary is over a year away, light years in the political realm, more than enough time to hurdle the allegations and proceed as if nothing was ever alleged. But this ain’t the fucking court of law. This is the MNR, a blog dedicated to truth, irrespective of how ugly or troubling it may be.

If you know me, you know that if I check you for some fuckery, it’s always and only after I’ve first checked myself. If I too am guilty of the same transgression, my words will be forthright. I’ll speak on how WE can overcome our collective fuckery. In my world, wrong is wrong. It doesn’t matter if I’m part of the wrong. My ass deserves to be on the chopping block as well.

I joked one time that if “me too” were a movement earlier in my work career, I probably would’ve had about 36 allegations. None would have been malicious (at least not in my eyes). I never illegally touched or forced myself on a female coworker. I never sexually harassed one, either. I have put my hands on female coworkers, always and only a pat on the shoulder. Of course, if that’s my folk, I probably hug her. But over the past few years, I’ve pondered whether even a pat on the shoulder is inappropriate. I will also admit that my conversation in the breakroom/lounge type setting may have been inappropriate from time to time. Never the Pornhub type, but more or less vintage Richard Pryor. Again, I ponder whether or not it was inappropriate. Sure, I got my share of laughs, but I never took the time to consider whether the ones who didn’t laugh felt a type of way. If they were, I was wrong. Plain and simple. Now, I know that the average caveman out there would argue against my point tooth and nail. There’s that old guard of male chauvinists and their successors that will never see it for what it really is. And then there’s that outright evil contingency that feels that any man who speaks against any type of workplace sexual harassment outside of rape is some type of closeted homosexual or effeminate male who’s been castrated by the world and feminism. They argue that speaking out against archaic principles always denotes the emasculation of the male. They really feel in their hearts that at the end of the day a man is superior to a woman. Some feel that the only true purpose of a woman is to reproduce and/or be used for a man’s sexual desires. Some equate the relative male advantage in physical strength to innately being proof of male superiority. But it’s all bullshit. I don’t give a fuck who you are. I stand on what I say. Fuck you and I’m available if you feel some type of way. You’re wrong ANY time you make a female coworker feel uncomfortable. She has a right to work in peace. It doesn’t matter how you feel about it. It matters how she feels about it. The same grace should be afforded to men. NO one at work should be made to feel uncomfortable by the opposite sex. Now back to Cuomo.

Andrew, you’re the type of motherfucker I can’t stand. You’re a very intelligent man. You know how to toe the line in a transparent manner that we can see from a mile away. If and when pinched, you (and others) can simply contend that you’ve done nothing illegal, which you haven’t (as of yet/per lack of litigation). In your elitist, narcissistic, and warped mind, you think that by doing it this way, you can: game your way into some pussy, lean on (brodie) a subordinate for some pussy, or fall into some pussy through privilege. This game has been in effect for millennia, and it’s tired. It’s the very essence of the casting couch. A man, whether through gender, physicality, stature, or leverage, can influence/intimidate/force/COERCE a woman into a sexual favor. When a powerful man brings sex into the mix, whether innuendo, suggestion, or outright solicitation, a woman (outside the working girls) is always put into the most fucked up scenario of Catch-22 possible. They say no and keep their dignity but risk losing their job/career. They say yes and risk losing their dignity and respect. It isn’t easy if you’re the fry girl who has aspirations of one day being assistant manager. Now, imagine if you were an aide to the governor of the state of New York. Refusal of a sexual advance can mean losing your position and being politically ostracized (Boylan is running for Manhattan borough president) or outright destroyed. An acceptance can mean losing your dignity and self-respect, not to mention the respect of your peers if and when your tryst is leaked. And to add shit to the shitstorm, it doesn’t even guarantee the promotion or boost. MF like Cuomo know exactly what corner they force women into when they do what he’s been alleged to have done. But I really don’t think they understand the trauma they put a woman through. And fuck you if you think I’m on some type of crusade. It’s the truth. Imagine all your career goals potentially resting on whether or not you suck a dick or fuck your boss? You went to school for all those years. You worked your whole ass off. You sacrificed damn near everything. You proved yourself in the lecture halls and on all the internships and jobs up to this point. You know that you’re worthy. But it all comes down to accepting your boss’s invitation to his hotel suite on the last night of the business trip, for which you worked 55-hour work weeks the last month in preparation. You have aspirations of being a junior partner. Yet, it all comes down to whether or not you fuck a 63-year-old creep and stick your finger up his ass. This is a fucked-up world. Now, ponder the fact that many women endure some form of this for a good portion of their lives. Most are forced to endure in silence, quietly being traumatized in the process. As shitty as it sounds, it is still commonplace. But like most things, it’s largely subtle.

We’ve read about the subjection of women since John Stuart Mill. It’s endured since the beginning of time. But like I said earlier, wrong is wrong. Change is imperative. I always ponder whether a MF who treats women like this could have lived with knowing his mother was bent over the desk twice a week by her boss to keep her secretary job when he was in Head Start. I ponder how that same MF would react if he found out his daughter sucked her Corporate Law professor’s dick for an influential recommendation to a prestigious law school. I hate any MF who uses his power or influence to sway the outcome of anything. I despise a MF who does it to a woman for sexual purposes. Gov. Cuomo, if you are in fact guilty, I hope they tar and feather you right beside the statue of your guy Columbus on 59th Street. FOH.

Respect women.

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