My Black Is Beautiful

Here's a little background information before my post. In the beginning of the semester for my com 319 class, the teacher asked what journalism field we wanted to work in and what kind of publications we wanted to write for. Since January 2005, I have wanted to write for Essence magazine and when I said that, one of my class mates said: "Every black girl I know wants to write for Essence magazine." He was black by the way. I was kind of offended at first but after reading the advertisement, which was seven pages long, I am no longer offended but proud and excited about wanting to work for a magazine or a publication that wants to uplift black women which is what I want to do with my writing.

In Essence magazine's December issue, there is a special advertising section for a website called http://www.myblackisbeautiful.com/. The advertisement included a personal journal and discussion guide. The first page held the actual poem, My Black is Beautiful, then an introduction by Najoh Tita-Reid, the Associate Director of Multicultural Marketing at Protor and Gamble. Instructions are to start a conversation group by discussing the topics mentioned in the Personal Journal and Discussion Guide, it tells what the goals of the discussion should be and how to go about starting one.

The next page asks a series of questions titled: My Beauty Journey. Some of the questions are; When do you feel most beautiful? Who did you think was the most beautiful girl in school when you were growing up? Describe her appearance. In what ways is being a Black girl different from just being a girl? Then it gives action activities. This one was to intentionally affirm Black women and girls by reminding them how beautiful they are. Be specific.

This is something that black women of all ages need today. I am a black woman and I feel that our image is not affirmed and continues to be the slowest image to change into a positive over the years. This is so important to for us black women and I am going to spread this around.

I don't have any new years resolutions. I just have things that I want to do. I want to get closer to GOD, get out of debt, get better with my writing, and try to do this campaign. I think that this is something that I want to be a part of. Go to the site and enlighten yourself!