A Colored Woman’s Film Guide To Procrastination

September 15, 2025 Newsletter  

Dìdi (2024)

Dearest friends, 

I’m a senior now and it has been dawning on me that my reality is not infinite anymore. Being in school is not infinite. I’ve been bred through the New York City public school system since I was five. My stomach is bottomless solely because the food in our public schools is so gross, I must have trained my systems to be able to handle trash. It’s funny, many Pratt students complain about the food, which yes I agree being this is a private school they should be able to provide high quality delicacies, but for me the minute I stepped into Pratt I saw gold. I saw gold in the vending machines, the self-serve ice cream maker, the mediocre shelved boba, the pre-made sandwiches, the wooden architecture, the accessible printing, books, paper, supplies, & the overconsumption of art with monetary value. I never thought I would end up at an art school. I never thought as a small city poet, I was considered an artist. These privileges are unheard of as someone who went to the “pride of Bay Ridge” high school (Telecommunications Arts & Technology.) Yet don’t be fooled, there were no arts in my favor. I didn’t think writing could be a career, and then I came here. And although it’s hard, I have more hope that this was the path meant for me. 

People tell me. You are going to do big things. You are going to be an astonished poet working in the publishing house of your dreams (whatever that may be). I am so proud of you. These comments make me want to rip my head off & serve it stone cold. I want to go to grad school, I want to be financially independent, make a name for myself, and make sure I’m remembered for my contribution. The imposter syndrome is at an all time high, but all I am doing to cope is watching films, when I should be doing homework or applying to jobs. 

I’ve watched Didi (2024) & Emergency (2022) recently. I wish more people knew the thriller/comedy Emergency. It speaks on the divide that is sometimes present within your own race/community. The two Black protagonists of that film are born in different circumstances. One knows police brutality kills us, while the other has blissfully never experienced that life. And unfortunately on a darker turn of events both of them begin to understand that difference or what the reality actually is when you are marked as an “aggressive” Black man. It’s ironic being that a lot of aggression is rewarded in white men as seen by Joe from YOU, Jeffery Dahmer fans, Ted Bundy fans, etc. The Monstrous archetype is fluid and that in itself is terrifying. The protagonists of Emergency find a white girl passed out on their dorm floor and spend the whole movie trying to help her, but also worry about their possible accusation. It ends tragically and the best way I could describe it is that they’ve both truly become Black. If you still aren’t interested by now, Sabrina Carpenter is playing another ignorant white woman just like she did in The Hate You Give. Curious & curiouser, who is type casting her for this?

In Didi there is something warm about the relatable cultural loneliness. If you liked Mid90s you’ll like Didi unless your sole takeaway from Mid90s was the skateboarding. Although I am not East Asian as Didi is catering too, I’m Black & South Asian having grown up with an immigrant mom. I felt the loneliness in trying to find your place in silence without upsetting the privileged who think you have a victim complex. In fact, I got an email two weeks ago accusing me of generalizing all white people as the same. But no, what I write is never to take away from what someone may have gone through or attack their individual identity, but rather no matter what at the end of the day, yes the white community or even this Pratt community has privilege we must recognize. And I am not sorry I talk about this a lot, at least not anymore. 

I replied in an email back, The Prattler will continue to do our best to be a feminist, liberal, & an open space that adheres to all as best as we can, but this conversation of race & capitalism will not be ignored just because it does not center around everyone. I feel that sums up most of what The Prattler is to me, and for when I am gone, what I hope remains. 

With gratitude, 

Sarina Greene

Editor-In-Chief

The Prattler

P.S. As an update on what Ella mentioned in the last newsletter I am definitely not cut out to be a surfer.