Last year, BET premiered a show, which was the first of its kind entitled “Black Girls Rock!” Beverly Bond, founder and CEO of BLACK GIRLS ROCK!, established this non-profit organization in 2006 to promote arts for women of color, empower youth, promote self-esteem and affect change in how women of color are seen in the media. Women of color, including African American women, are celebrated for their efforts as they make a difference in their communities and in THE community. Doctors, servicewomen, entrepreneurs, teachers, artists and others represent the spectrum of ordinary ladies who make extraordinary strides.
With so many women in our community who are successful in the limelight or are our unsung heroes, do we need organizations and television shows to remind us that we rock?
Yes we do. In fact, we need them now more than ever, and those are the exact reasons why we need that support system.
Over the last decade, I’ve read, seen, and heard “ad nauseum” about how it sucks to be a black woman because we can’t find a man. No matter how successful we are, it’s just not possible, or so I’ve read, seen and heard. Right…
My sisters in New York (and the rest of the world) had the opportunity to see a billboard of a black girl with the words, “The most dangerous place for an African American is in the womb” over her head.
A few months ago, blogger Satoshi Kanazawa posted an article that contained a “study” which revealed African American women are less attractive than any other race or sex. He was terminated for his actions.
If that’s not bad enough, you have reality shows where women are back-biting and throwing drinks and fists towards one another. Come on ladies, we’re better than that. Your mothers, aunts and grandmothers were better than that.
Despite the so-called articles, studies and telecasts, we DO rock and we rock very well. We need to instill in our daughters and our sisters at home how much we rock. That’s where it all starts.
The choice is yours. It’s up to you to decide how hard you wanna rock.
