Nicki Minaj’s body is (regrettably) the media’s sole focus whenever she’s in the spotlight, but an ABC family sitcom based on her family’s immigration from Trinidad in the early 1990s is about to change all of that. Young Nicki, written by Kate Angelo and produced by Minaj herself, will focus on Minaj’s life growing up in Queens, New York,… Continue Reading →
What the 67th Emmy awards revealed about women of color in TV
The 67th primetime Emmy awards happened this past Sunday, and while I opted out of watching it live in favor of the premier of the last season of Downton Abbey (many tears!), a tweet that night from CNN contributor Rachel Sklar was cause enough for me to drop my cup of tea back into its saucer and… Continue Reading →
A sorority girl’s take on the Alpha Phi recruitment video
If you follow women in the media— and, honestly, even if you don’t — you’ve probably seen the recruitment video members of Alpha Phi at the University of Alabama released in August 2015. The video, which quickly went viral and was taken down due to backlash, featured dozens of Barbie-esque women gallivanting through their campus, promising the viewers they, too,… Continue Reading →
Steps forward: From Gilmore Girls to Orange is the New Black
Advocating for more realistic portrayals of female characters in the media has been a major part of the third wave of feminism. But in all of our work and efforts, have we been making any strides? Is there anything we can point to and say, “This, my friends, is headed in the right direction”? When Gilmore… Continue Reading →
Why Danielle Brooks’ essay is so important to the body image conversation
Actress Danielle Brooks is making waves in Hollywood. Best known for her role as Tasha “Tastee” Jefferson on the Netflix series Orange is the New Black, Brooks is now enjoying a level of professional success that few actors get to experience. And she recently revealed that she’s enjoying another kind of success, one that is… Continue Reading →
A Black Female Heroine Goes 3D
Something amazing is happening, and it only took until 2014! (Is the sarcasm on that last part translating here?) In November of this year, DreamWorks Animation Studios will release Home, the first 3D animated film with a black female heroine. The only thing that makes this news even better? Pop star Rihanna is playing the… Continue Reading →
Why I say I’m bossy
I remember the first time someone told me that I was being bossy. I think I was about five or six years old and was playing with friends at a park or someplace. Anyway, I remember blinking and then shrugging my shoulders as I said, “So?” with all the sass a five — almost six… Continue Reading →
Think only white women get eating disorders? Think again.
In popular culture, stories of eating disorders are dominated by white women. But what about the other sufferers? Women of color have been sidelined in eating disorder funding and research, and have therefore been underestimated in our perception of the affected demographic. In the new Slate article “Eating disorders do not discriminate“, Michelle Konstantinovsky explores… Continue Reading →
NBC takes a step forward in gender and race representation with Revolution
On September 17, NBC aired its newest television series Revolution. The premise of the show is pretty simple: One day, every single piece of technology completely blacks out, permanently. Fifteen years later on the outskirts of Chicago, families are living feudally, relying on farming and hunting to sustain themselves. We learn that Ben Matheson may… Continue Reading →