Month: April 2015

Posted on

Talks at the Schomburg: Portrayals of Black Women in Media

IMG_0007The Schomburg hosted a Women in Media chat a few nights ago and I decided to attend. I believe this is an extremely important conversation, especially for someone like me who wants to break into the field. The panelist consisted of one of my favorites, Demetria Lucas of Belle in Brooklyn blog and book; she’s also on Bravo’s Blood Sweat and Heels; Vanessa K. DeLuca Editor-in-chief of Essence Magazine, Farai Chideya journalist and host of One with Farai and moderating, journalist Akisa Omulepu. So many interesting topics were brought up and I would love to share some of their discussion points as well as my takeaways.

Misogyny: Do men hate women? After watching shows like Love and Hip Hop you begin to ponder this. Sometimes it makes my heart jump when I hear a man use the B-word to address a woman, attack a woman, or even as a term of endearment. These shows allow women to be disrespected all the time. Being called a B**** is degrading. Historically, in hip hop culture, women were not viewed as queens, we were/are viewed as a man’s B****, their subordinate, or a sexual object. Women like Joseline Hernandez, allow her partner, Stevie J to degrade her because of her past as a stripper or Mimi, who allowed her boyfriend to exploit her by releasing their sex tape when she has a little daughter, are just some of the examples of misogyny illustrated on mainstream television, and it’s detrimental to our image as a whole.

Modern Mom: Sitcoms are a prime example where you see black women in modern mom roles. Most famous Clair Huxtable, yet most recently Rainbow Johnson played by Tracee Ellis Ross on the ABC hit show Blackish. She’s an eccentric and quirky doctor, and I can almost see her being that type of mom in real life. But is that the only story we have to tell? Is the modern African American mom, a pretty and a professional doctor or lawyer, with 5 children? Continue reading “Talks at the Schomburg: Portrayals of Black Women in Media”

Posted on

Why Black Girls Rock Is Necessary!

MichelleO_MadGirls-640x426

“When Black Girls Rock, stuff happens…”

Young girls, especially young black girls need to be empowered, plain and simple. I grew up during a time where I looked up to video vixens as the women I wanted to become. There were very little positive female influences that looked like me in the media and on TV. Every day, I would turn to BET and watch these beautiful and exotic women in music videos, with assets you could envy, collecting cash from rappers and shaking their butts in the camera. I thought they represented the ideal; the type of women guys wanted. The type of women who could get anything they wanted, just by being beautiful. I believe this type of representation had a huge effect on me and my perception of black womanhood. My behavior as soon as I was able to enter a club was evidence of this. I had a skewed sense of what it took to get the attention of a man. I had a skewed sense of what it took to keep a man. I had a skewed sense of feeling like I was never enough or never doing enough. I had a skewed sense of what it meant to be a woman of integrity.

I am so proud that there is an award show that highlights the brave women who have made a difference in the world. Our girls need to be uplifted, our girls need an education, our girls need a chance and Black Girls Rock sees that we need to take action now. Continue reading “Why Black Girls Rock Is Necessary!”