Recently, I came across an article that I surely believed was satire entitled “Michelle Obama Issues Racist Message to American Girls.” The article was written in response to First Lady Michelle Obama’s speech at Black Girls Rock!, an annual awards ceremony.
Black Girls Rock! was first held in 2010 and the sole purpose of the ceremony is to celebrate black women who have been making strides in entertainment, music, humanitarian issues, the education sector and more. This year prominent black women such as Erykah Badu and Jada Pinkett Smith were honored.
But the ceremony also honors extraordinary young women who are making strides in their communities, such as 15 year old Chental-Song Bembry, who is the author and illustrator of her own book series. Some people are confused as to why there isn’t a show called “All Girls Rock!”
To some critics, the show is racist because it was exclusive to celebrating only one race. So, why couldn’t the show just celebrate every girl?
This ceremony was held for a vastly underrepresented group. A University of Southern California study found that out of all major films produced in 2012, 76.3 percent of the characters who had speaking parts were white.
Only 10.8 percent of speakers were black and, in a male dominated industry, that means even fewer of those actors were black women.
Among 565 directors of top grossing films, only 33 were black and only 2 were black women. In 2014, only 14% of major fashion magazines featured a woman of color.
Black girls do not see themselves enough.
When you look in a magazine and no one looks like you, you might start to question your own beauty. The purpose of BGR! is to empower black women, to say “We see you and we love what you’re doing.”
First Lady Michelle Obama got on stage and proclaimed “black girls are beautiful and smart.” She talked about how people doubted she could go to a top tier school.
She said that sometimes the world tells us that we need to look a certain way or act a certain way. She told us to ignore those comments and that she was proud of us. Her speech will forever resonate with me. The purpose of Black Girls Rock! isn’t to alienate a race and gender identity, but to uplift those who, frankly, need it sometimes. When people automatically think you’re a thug, or ghetto, or rude, or uneducated or unattractive simply because of how you look, then it’s arguably necessary. Black Girls Rock! is about love and support – nothing else. And if someone finds something wrong with that … then that’s their problem.
Oh yeah. I almost forgot. Black girls rock!
