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The Stoop is a podcast on Apple music presented by two female hosts named Leila Day and Hana Baba. This podcast is about how the Black community tends to get treated differently and offers perspectives and strategies for navigating the Black experience.

I listened to several episodes for this review. Episode two intrigued me for many reasons. In this episode, Day and Baba talk about three words that are not commonly used within the Black community: I love you. I love you is not a phrase that is frequently said out loud, especially to a lot of Black men. In the podcast, Day and Baba interview some Black individuals and talk about how the phrase was not thrown around their households growing up, and for some, even to this day.

One man talked about how he had just got out of prison, and when he was locked up, he started to tell some of his close friends in there that he loved them. One thing that struck me was when he said that his mother never said it to him until he served time. Every time he got off the phone with her while he was in prison, he would say I love you to his mom. She started to reciprocate it, and that is how the cycle started.

In my past experiences, my mother and father have showed me the utmost love that you can give to a child. Just because I have gotten so much love from my parents, does not mean that I do not know what goes on outside of my realm. I try to say it as much as possible to my friends and family because I know it can go a long way. I believe that in the Black community, there is a lot of pride. Some might think that showing love can be seen as weak or vulnerable, but love and vulnerability are what we need in this world.

The Black community has a hard time with the concept of love because of the stigmas that are portrayed about us. One thing that has been holding down the Black community is the stigma that Black people might not be the smartest. In school, we tend to be looked at as dumb and uneducated among non-Black peers, where in fact that is not the case at all.

The color of one’s skin should not be a reason to limit anyone’s abilities.

I have experienced this throughout my education, being looked at as the person that might not get it, when in fact I do. I have always been a bright student, and I have always wanted that validation from somewhere or at least just one teacher. Nobody has ever come up to me or said anything wrong, but I can always tell when I am treated as the “odd man out”, and I do not like that all. The color of one’s skin should not be a reason to limit anyone’s abilities. Plenty of Black students have graduated from their high school and colleges at the top of their classes and that it just one small instance where you can see the Black excellence strive and really take off to another level. 

Black individuals are often times stereotyped to be scary, mean or violent. This results in being treated unfairly by law enforcement, and by people in general. I have experienced these types of quick judgments my whole life as a tall Black man. I can see the stares as I walk past, the whispers to their family or friends and I have seen people out right avoid looking my way at all. Like I have stated before, Black individuals are human beings and expect to be treated as such. It is especially hard when you have the law enforcement seemingly not on your side. I have not experienced any mistreatment from the law personally, but there are many Black individuals who have not been as lucky. 

Altogether, this podcast, to me, addresses the issue of love within the Black community. It gives good insight on what goes on throughout the mind of Black individuals. The problems that the Black community has to face on a daily basis are very much alive. We as a group need to come together to stop this growing issue immediately.