Marissa

“If someone took my baby away from me, I would have done a lot more than get a haircut. I would have burned the city to the ground.”
― Britney Spears, The Woman in Me

“Shaving my head was a way of saying to the world: Fuck you. You want me to be pretty for you? Fuck you. You want me to be good for you? Fuck you. You want me to be your dream girl? Fuck you. I’d been the good girl for years. I’d smiled politely while TV show hosts leered at my breasts, while American parents said I was destroying their children by wearing a crop top, while executives patted my hand condescendingly and second-”
― Britney Spears, The Woman in Me

“Everyone thought it was hilarious. Look how crazy she is! Even my parents acted embarrassed by me. But nobody seemed to understand that I was simply out of my mind with grief. My children had been taken away from me. With my head shaved, everyone was scared of me, even my mom. No one would talk to me anymore because I was I was too ugly. My long hair was a big part of what people liked – I knew that. I knew a lot of guys thought long hair was hot… shaving my head was a way of saying to the world: Fuck you. You want me to be pretty for you? Fuck you. You want me to be good for you? Fuck you. You want me to be your dream girl? Fuck you.”
― Britney Spears, The Woman in Me

“I demand to be taken as seriously as a clown.”
― Ziwe, Black Friend: Funny, incisive essays on navigating Blackness, tokenism, and friendship in predominantly white spaces.