a quick public service announcement: it’s not a contradiction that i’m devoted to lipstick and liberation, that my swag is tight while i fight for social justice or that i can be fly and simultaneously woke.
unfortunately, i didn’t always feel this way — there was a time when i felt the definition of a community organizer or someone who simply cares deeply about the world dictated a certain script. that i couldn’t care about fashion or i’d be considered materialistic or i couldn’t wear makeup or i’d be trapped in a european standard of beauty. i now recognize that much of my early entry into black consciousness developed out of relationships with men who were content to replace white suprmacist patriarchy with male domination of their own creation. thankfully, leaving them and their sexist philosophies behind has widened how i define womanhood and my commitment to my people.
with a growing black lives matter movement that is intersectional and reaching masses of people without a restrictive view of what it means to be committed to a movement, the concept of politics and fashion isn’t quite the anomaly it was when i started this blog in 2011. today there’s an online community that speaks to women of color who are both fly and woke.
5 must reads for the fly & woke
- simone digital is my top read that combines beauty, wellness and dope written content. it’s the perfect stop whether looking for a new lipstick color or seeking to better understand the struggles faced by trans women.
- for harriet gives you the “fullness of black womanhood.” race, gender, entertainment, beauty, fashion, no topic is off limits for this daily read and its sister sites.
- hannah magazine this online magazine’s images are like a visual playground. recently crowdsourced, hannah is already bringing flavor with a strong voice and cool kid vibe.
- feministing is a chronicle of feminist thought for the non-feminist. the website takes the mystique/stigma away from the “f” word by tackling everything from beyoncé to world affairs.
- blavity speaks to the black millennial. it’s equally great for a good meme, future lyrics and coverage of black lives matter protests.
image via rekita nicole
