Black Cards Matter

It seems black people need black valentines cards

Valentine’s Day is a day that's excitedly circled on calendars by couples across the world. And finding the perfect card to go along with a bouquet of roses and a box of chocolates is a difficult task for most. But for some it's even tougher.

It's never been difficult for me. I walked into Tesco on Friday and there was a stand of big bastarding cards right there at the entrance, so I bought one. If you prefer to buy these things online, Modern Toss always has a good selection

"It’s almost impossible to find a card with a Black or Brown face," explains Corita Akinyemi, a mum-of-three from Enfield. "I find that if you're doing your usual shopping out in town, or locally and need to pick up a quick card for a birthday, your choices are limited to cards with animals, flowers or just words.

The Valentines card I just bought Mrs Bucko had a rose and a heart on it. But some of us don't have to define our skin colour in everything we do, which makes life a little easier and probably more enjoyable

"It’s disappointing that in 2022, you can’t run to your local supermarket to pick up a last minute card that reflects and represents who you are as an individual."

I'm a nerd. The lack of nerd cards in Tesco is mortifying. Or would be if I had a big nerd chip on my shoulder

Frustrated by the lack of options available to Black people, Corita decided to take matters into her own hands and launch her own range of greeting cards just before lockdown called Good Day Prints.

So it's a non-problem then. She spotted a gap in the market and like any good capitalist, she stepped in and filled it. I wonder how she would take to being called a good capitalist? Most of these skin colour botherers usually have a more socialist leaning, but you have to admire her for not asking the Government to do something, but taking action herself. Which makes her a good capitalist

"There was a real desire for art and imagery that represented the Black experience," Corita tells MyLondon. "I really wanted to show positive images of Black love and the Black love experience that would make people smile and can inspire."

So this article has just morphed from a made up grievance to an advert (Pro tip: Don't Google 'Black Love' without the safe search filters on)

To date, Good Day Prints' Etsy page has received over 300 reviews and an overwhelming amount of positive comments from people who can relate to the challenges of finding these types of cards.

I just had a good sken on Etsy and couldn't actually find her page. That doesn't necessarily mean anything, as it's only the second time I've ever been on Etsy, so could just be looking in the wrong place, but it doesn't bode well. At least her site is linked in the article

More recently Corita has received requests from people asking for more shades of brown and for cards that celebrate more occasions like a new job, new home or passed driving test cards. All of this has further cemented her belief that the market is there.

Great! I hope that peoples racial grievances make her a lot of money, I truly do. That's what the free market I believe in, is all about

Corita became aware of the importance of Black love being represented in the mainstream media after not seeing it around her when she was growing up.

"I say all of this to say that I didn’t grow up with many examples of Black love around me," she said.

She adds: "For me, Black love is passionate, and it’s about culture – I’m Jamaican and my husband is Nigerian. Our love is a blend of both of our cultures. For others, Black love could be about adventure, exploring the world together, facing adversity together. The possibilities are endless."

I'm not entirely sure what Black Love is supposed to be but once again, take care if doing your own research on Google

I love my wife very much and we are both white. I've never before considered the meaning of 'White Love', but I'm sure it would be frowned upon if I tried to make a dime from it by promoting white love in greetings cards 

Not to worry, I've never tried to define my existence solely and completely by the colour of my skin, so whatever

According to Statista, the market value of greeting cards in the United Kingdom was roughly £1.4 billion British in 2020. However, these figures fail to tell the story about the lack of representation in the industry.

What it tells me is that we spend far too much money on greetings cards. It never fails to amaze me that family and friends I see on an all too regular basis, insist on giving me a Christmas Card or birthday card

Maybe this is a consumerist frivolity that black people have been avoiding by not having their very own tailor made cards? Until now

Corita says: "I think the greetings card industry can do a lot more. The Black love experience is so unique..

There's that Black Love again. And I'm sorry flower, but black skin is no more unique or special than any other skin tone on the planet. You're not unique, you're mundane. You're normal

I think they need to do more in employing and consulting Black people, Black creatives and Black brands that can authentically create our experience in cards.

Why? Are you not doing exactly that yourself now?

I may not have been able to find this lady's shop on Etsy, but I did manage to find a number of other people who are all creating and selling greetings cards with black skinned people on them. Here are a few:

HaloByAngelCharles

Jaiveness (The most popular of them all) 

BeautifullyNamed

ByCandiceChenade

IonnaMArieDesigns

RunningDogDesignGB

MSCharlaneousDesigns

SpiritedXShe

NatisCreationsStore

That was just on page one of my search. For a person who can't find a single greetings card with a black face, I don't think she's trying too hard (Could be by design)

We exist...

We know. Believe me, we know

Black and ethnic minority people make up 44 per cent of London's eight million plus population

All that tells me is that the English identity has had it's heart ripped out in it's own capital city. Replacing nearly 50% of the population with totally different cultures, cannot be good for either cultures

with 14 per cent of the UK's entire population being non-white.

Well if 14% of greetings cards need to be non-white, maybe you can do something about it with your Black Cards Matter shop 

"We’ve got to a point where we’re tired of being forgotten and being underrepresented so we are creating the change for ourselves.

If you really think you're underrepresented, watch the adverts on the telly next time they come on, rather than making a brew

She says: "I hope it has an empowering impact on the next generation. I want them to feel proud of who they are, be confident in their skin and to know that they are important too, their experiences are valid too.

I don't think it will. If you have to keep reminding young people that they should be proud of who they are, confident in their skin and are important and valid they will start to think, Why? What is wrong? Why do I need to be reminded of this? Why am I different?

The best way to make people confident in their skin and all that other stuff is to shut the fuck up about it. Stop drawing attention to differences, stop thinking of everything as black and white, us and them

A couple of decades ago we were almost there. Now the black grievance mongers have taken us back so far it will take years to repair the damage

"I also hope that it encourages them to look beyond the limiting messages we see in the media as we are so much more."

The only limiting messages I see are from black people themselves: We are black, our skin defines us, we are oppressed and we need special treatment because we are not as good as white people