You know, usually, folks wait until later in the day to share their “hot takes” but our resident millennial diva Keke Palmer decided to tap in early. Minutes after the eight o’clock hour, the Virgo Tendencies singer took to Twitter to express her thoughts on, of all things, EBT cards.
Now girl. You know you done messed up, right?
Let me first caveat by saying, this is not meant to be a drag. I generally stan anything Keke sets her hands to, but this take was absolutely unnecessary for three reasons. Reason one is the fact that just mere minutes after the sun got good and awake, the first thing on the Hustlers star’s mind was EBT and the eating habits of poor people. Really? That’s the first thing on your mind on a Monday morning? The only thing I’m thinking about at 8 am is the fact that I haven’t had my first cup of coffee yet and how my bonnet seems to always mysteriously vanish from my head overnight. Now, I’m not one to try to police another Black woman’s thoughts and intentions, but as we all know, it’s impact over intent. And when you poorly word your feelings—no matter how well-intentioned they may have been—nine times out of ten, the weight of your words will hit harder than anything you might have meant.
The second reason is that the statement blatantly oversimplifies the complexities of lower socioeconomic areas and the systemic conditions that perpetuate them. Lack of access via “food deserts,” proximity, transportation, the presumption that lower-income fail to prioritize healthy foods and eating habits, plus the overall disenfranchisement of those using EBT were all lacking in Palmer’s initial statement, thus making the message come across as hella condescending and elitist. Finally, the third reason: This was unnecessary given we’re in a time where people are arguably more displaced than ever and to amplify a particular peoples’ problem without offering tangible solutions or saying what YOU plan to do about it is just plain rude, ineffective, and distracting.
Even still, the Scream Queens star doubled down on her stance:
Whew, big yikes. I hate to say it, but at the risk of sounding equally ridiculous: Keke, you probably should’ve just sat there and ate YOUR food.
This is all too much. (Now where the hell is my bonnet?)