Black Fatigue Ain’t Yours to Claim: A Breakdown for the Culture

Black Fatigue Ain’t Yours to Claim: A Breakdown for the Culture

Here we go again! I’m scrolling through TikTok I stopped on a creator that was talking about racism and deconstruction of it,  of course I'm in the comments and reading, not even two comments in, her comment section is flooded with racist white people screaming Black Fatigue, Black fatigue but had no idea of what it means.

Let's get one thing clear: Black fatigue is not a trending hashtag, a performative buzzword, or a term for bored white folks tired of hearing the truth. It is ours born from centuries of being over-policed, overlooked, overworked, and underestimated. And now, just like everything else we create, some folks are trying to co-opt it like it’s a brand-new thought they discovered over brunch. Let’s talk about it.

What Is Black Fatigue?

Black fatigue is the spiritual, mental, emotional, and physical exhaustion that comes from simply existing while Black in a system built to grind us down. We’re talking generational wear-and-tear. Trauma that’s not just individual but collective. It’s your grandmother’s quiet pain, your uncle’s nervousness around cops, your exhaustion after code-switching through a whole workday.

It’s not just tired. It’s tired-tired.

The term was deeply unpacked by Mary-Frances Winters in her powerful book, Black Fatigue: How Racism Erodes the Mind, Body, and Spirit. And make no mistake this book is a necessary read, not a trend to misquote on social media.

The Book That Said It First and Said It Best

Mary-Frances Winters is a DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) expert with decades of experience, and she knew we needed language to name what we’ve always felt but couldn’t always explain. In Black Fatigue, she breaks down how racism doesn’t just hurt feelings it breaks down bodies, weakens immune systems, increases stress-related illnesses, and literally shortens lives.

She digs into:

How systemic racism isn’t just in the news it’s in healthcare, housing, hiring, policing, everything.

How explaining racism over and over again to people who just don’t want to get it is an added layer of exhaustion.

How Black women carry even more of the load navigating hair politics, misogynoir, workplace microaggressions, and the constant pressure to be twice as good for half as much.

The message is clear: We’re not imagining it. And we are not okay.

Let’s Talk About the New “Anti-Woke” Co-Opting

Now here come the culture vultures trying to remix the term “Black fatigue” and throw it under the same dusty umbrella as “woke” and “DEI” as if they’re the ones under attack.

They’re saying they’re “fatigued” by diversity initiatives.

They’re “tired” of hearing about race.

They claim they are the victims now.

No. What they’re tired of is accountability.

What they’re really fatigued by is being forced to acknowledge a truth they’ve ignored for generations.

Let’s be real: Black people aren’t asking for extra, we're asking for equity. We just want to live, work, create, and exist without dodging constant interruptions from white noise and manufactured outrage.

The Difference Between “Feeling Uncomfortable” and Black Fatigue

Unhappy white people complaining about “reverse racism” aren’t experiencing fatigue, they're experiencing consequences for the first time. That’s not oppression. That’s discomfort. And those two things are not the same.

The discomfort of confronting privilege ≠ generations of trauma and systemic harm.

We don’t have the luxury of tapping out of conversations about race because we live it. Daily. It’s in our schools, our paychecks, our doctors’ offices, and even our air. They don’t get to redefine a term rooted in Black survival because they don’t like how it makes them feel.

How "Black Fatigue" Heals & Calls for Change

Winters doesn’t just drop knowledge and walk away, she offers solutions. The book is also about:

Healing: Naming the harm is the first step to collective recovery.

Community: Reminding Black folks we’re not alone in this.

Action: Calling non-Black people is not just to read and repost, but to actually do the work.

For white folks who genuinely want to be allies? It’s not about guilt, it's about responsibility. That means:

Educating yourself without asking us to carry the emotional weight

Using your privilege to dismantle oppressive systems

Making room. Not just at the table, but in the boardroom, in policy, and in the media.

More Books Like Black Fatigue?

If Black Fatigue had you nodding your head and clutching your heart, here are a few others to check out:

The Racial Healing Handbook by Dr. Anneliese Singh  a toolkit for processing racial trauma and engaging in anti-racism work

Sister Outsider by Audre Lorde  because Lorde been told y’all about living as a Black woman in a white, patriarchal world

Rest Is Resistance by Tricia Hersey a love letter to Black people reclaiming rest as a form of resistance

Final Thought.

Black fatigue isn’t up for reinterpretation. It’s not a slogan to be watered down. It is a lived experience, a daily struggle, and a call for systemic change.

So if you're tired of hearing about racism, imagine being tired from surviving it.

We’re not asking for sympathy. We’re demanding recognition—and rest.