The Appropriation of “Rest in Power”
Why Every Thing Isn’t for Every Body
I came across a Twitter thread in which a woman made it abundantly clear to another that she saw nothing wrong with appropriating a phrase that originated in Black circles: rest in power. At first I ignored the matter, but the more I thought about how the woman doubled down on her position and assumed privilege, the more it got under my skin. The reasons her actions drove me to to my keyboard are manifold, but I’ll focus on just a few.
First, know that I try not to “should” on people. I like to believe that people have, along with their inherent agency, inherent common sense, and an understanding that intentions rarely outweight impact. But it never fails to amaze me when people prove this is not the case.
But I digress.
Back to “rest in power.”
On its face, the phrase is an obvious modification — a twist, a cultural upgrade if not personalization — of the standard “rest in peace.” These three words probably originated with clerics (priests, rabbis, imams, ministers, pastors, and the like) as a blessing, a final prayer or appeal that the deceased would receive in full measure from the Divine that which was sought after and unattainable to them during their time on Earth.
