How White Girl Problems Changed Our Culture
By Thoughtis
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnhmJ73PPmI&w=575&h=390]
Love it or hate it, White Girl Problems is here to stay. In just a year and a half, the popular satirical Twitter has managed to get over 400,000 followers, earn an impressive celebrity fanbase and complete a book that’s due out on Hyperion in January. Although most people are quick to turn their noses up on the success of Twitter feeds (Shit My Dad Says was cancelled after only one season on CBS), you can’t deny White Girl Problems’ influence on popular culture. Not only has the Twitter spawned many imitation accounts (you name a race/ gender/ sexuality/ stereotype and there will undoubtedly be a White Girl Problems-esque Twitter account about it), it’s become a part of our lexicon — something that people aways say after complaining about something ridiculous and trivial. How often have you heard people comment, “That’s a white girl problem. I have such a white girl problem today…”? Probably more often than you’d like to admit. It goes to show that, unlike Shit My Dad Says, which was a funny concept conceived by a comedy writer, White Girl Problems has become more than just a funny Twitter account. It tapped into something universal and helped define the everyday experiences of a sizable part of our generation. When people criticize it, I often think it comes from a place of secret shame and embarrassment. They’re uncomfortable with the fact that so many people relate to it. I get that, but White Girl Problems, to me, is all about being able to make fun of yourself before someone else does. It’s a level of self-awareness that, quite frankly, we all were in dire need of. I think it’s refreshing that so many people are recognizing their privilege and, in a way, acknowledging how lucky they are to have such silly predicaments. It beats being a humoress delusional diva, doesn’t it?
Another component of White Girl Problems’ success is the anonymity of its creators. Even though The Daily revealed who was behind the Twitter feed back in April, the writers have kept a low profile throughout, even keeping their names off the cover of their book and crediting it to the voice of White Girl Problems, Babe Walker. This secretiveness has helped blur the lines between fact and fiction and allowed readers to get completely immersed in Babe Walker’s world. Is Babe real? Is she a character? Are you best friends with her?! Probably. Everyone knows a Babe Walker. Everyone knows a person who is a walking and talking white girl problem, right?
Most importantly, White Girl Problems is funny. Like I mentioned before, countless ripoffs have been made in the wake of its success, which only help exemplify how strong of a wit it actually has. Although no one knows if White Girl Problems will ever veer into television, the video featured above of Babe Walker attending fashion week shows that it’s more than capable of making the transition.