Melissa Harris-Perry's Black Feminism Syllabus Is All Kinds of Amazing
Last week, whilst schooling
It's Shocking That People Are Shocked by Best Man Holiday's Success
On Friday night, Best Man Holiday beat Thor: The Dark World at the box office. While Thor was still number one movie of the weekend — earning $38 million — Best Man raked in $30 million, prompting a bunch of people to question: What does it mean?
12 Years A Slave: Rage, Privilege, Black Women and White Women
Going insane was a luxury. It’s the going, that’s the treat. Going suggests travel, moving. There was no going. The madness was constant and still, sitting there, like a place on a map. It was where they lived, where they were from, born and bred into viscously mundane inescapable crazy. The women in the beautifully…
Racist 21st Birthday Party Gleefully Documented on Facebook
A young white Australian woman turned 21 and decided to have an "African" themed birthday party. After the festivities, she posted photos to Facebook. Ignorance, insensitivity and racism ahoy!
The New Hot Hairdo: Just Letting It Be
In today's New York Times, Ruth La Ferla contemplates the Afro; in today's WWD, Sarah Ballentine describes breaking her addiction to weekly blowouts. Apparently, natural is in.
Miley Cyrus's Antics Are Being Encouraged by Black People
Miley Cyrus is topless on her first-ever cover of Rolling Stone, and inside, she admits that she's bothered by her MTV performance being labeled racist — and she has some words for people who believe her "ratchet" ways are nothing more than cultural appropriation.
Racist Congressman Uses Fried Chicken to Defend Her Right to Be Racist
Now that politicians have solved all of the problems, it's lovely to see them getting down to the really important stuff — petty, childish gestures in support of a dying ideology. Come, little ducklings. Let's meet Republican Colorado Congressman-cum-professional-racist Lori Saine.
Thandie Newton's New Beauty Blog Aims to 'Abolish Otherness'
Actress Thandie Newton — along with makeup artist Kay Montano — is launching a new beauty blog on September 16. The ladies hope to be offering a new, different and more inclusive take on the subject.
Garcelle Beauvais' Biracial Twins Inspire Book for Mixed Kids
"We’d go to bookstores and libraries all the time and I was like, 'Why aren’t there any pictures of kids that look like my kids?'" So fretted actress Garcelle Beauvais, mother to biracial sons. She was so frustrated by the situation, she went ahead and wrote a children's book herself.
Venezuelan Women Are Getting Nose Jobs To Look More Caucasian
In a quest for la nariz perfilada, the perfectly-formed (read: Anglo-looking) nose, there is an epidemic of rhinoplasties among black and multi-racial women in Venezuela, according to a study out of Dartmouth by assistant anthropology professor Lauren Gulbas. In examining the racial tensions and beauty regimes of women …
School Dress Code Mysteriously Bans Afro-Puffs (Updated)
The Horizon Science Academy in Lorain, Ohio issued a new dress code this month. In the letter — obtained by the blog Black Girl Long Hair — a lot of the things not permitted make sense: No sagging pants, no hats or caps, no frayed or ripped uniforms. But no afro-puffs?
Get Ready to Play Paula Deen Apology Bingo!
After she totally stood up
On Miley Cyrus, Ratchet Culture and Accessorizing With Black People
A lesson from Miley Cyrus's new video: If you want to look "cool" and "edgy" and "tough," just steal the styles and dance moves of black people.
Amanda Bynes Wants to Be a Black Woman So Drake Will Love Her
I mean, can you blame her?! I am one. Beyoncé is one. Anderson Cooper is one. We’re a good group.
It Doesn't Matter That Remember Me's Main Character Is a Black Woman.
I wasn't sure that I was going to write about the race of Remember Me's heroine because I wasn't sure there'd be anything to write about. And after having played the game
The 10 Awesomest Things About Shonda Rhimes
A worth-your-while New York Times profile of Shonda Rhimes — creator of Grey's Anatomy and Scandal — is chock-full of awesome.
Gab About Hair on a New Social Networking Site for Women of Color
Madame You is a new and very thoughtful social networking site for women of color; the website combines science (the founders have backgrounds in computer science and chemical engineering), technology (the site is powered by Techturized, a hair technology company), and politics ("We understand that hair is an extension…
The Misguided Campaign to 'Bring Back the Afro'
When is a compliment not really a compliment? When is praise not really praise? Here's a hint: When you're a white man reminiscing about the good old days, when black people wore Afros. Yeah...no. Talk about reducing something complex to something simple.
Meet Britain's First Black Marchioness
Meet Emma McQuiston, 26-year-old daughter of a Nigerian oil tycoon, former actress and "celebrity chef." She is engaged to Ceawlin Thynne, Viscount of Weymouth. His father is the "notorious" Marquess of Bath. His home, — Longleat House, a 100,000 acre estate — is pretty close to being Downton Abbey, except there's a safari …
The Truth About Using a White Girl in the 'African Queen' Fashion Shoot
Numéro magazine has issued an apology of sorts for the African Queen editorial in the March 2013 issue, in which Ondria Hardin, a 16-year-old, blond-haired, blue-eyed model, was shot with her skin darkened. But the magazine's message — and a message from the photographer himself — only further complicate the issue.
Adding a Black Guy on Downton Abbey Will Make It Even More Awesome
By now you have heard that there will be at least one black character on the new season of Downton Abbey. This is fucking exciting. Because the timeline on the show has reached the 1920s, and the 1920s were an interesting time in black history: Being black was cool.
Where Is Kerry Washington's Major Magazine Cover?
With more than 8 million viewers every Thursday night and a huge Twitter presence, Scandal is officially a hit. This year, Kerry Washington — who, as we have mentioned several times before, is the first black woman to have the lead role in a network drama since 1974 — also has a role in an Oscar-nominated film, Django…
Harlem Residents Completely Unimpressed and Rather Offended by Harlem…
"I think they're misinformed." "Zombies going crazy?" "It's not the Harlem Shake, like, at all
Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue Goes to 7 Continents, Finds Exotic…
For the 2013 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue, the magazine photographed models on all 7 continents. A world tour of ill-fitting "swim" wear! But sometimes a half-naked lady standing in front of a gorgeous natural backdrop just isn't enough. So the photographers used natives as props.
The Annie Remake: Willow Smith Out, Quevanzhané Wallis In?
A remake of Annie — updated to modern times, set in Detroit and possibly produced by "Hard-Knock Life"-lover Jay-Z — has been in the works for a while. Last year, Emma Thompson told the BBC she'd been working on the script for three years; we also heard that Willow Smith would star in the flick. But now, Shadow and Act …
Vanity Fair's Hollywood Issue Pushes the Women of Color Aside, As Per…
This is Vanity Fair's 19th annual Hollywood Issue, and it's a lighthearted, circus-themed portfolio called "Bruce Weber's Adventures in Hollywood." According to VF.com:
Five Things You Need to Know About Africa's First Female Billionaire
Meet Isabel Dos Santos. She is 40 years old. Forbes has just named her Africa's first female billionaire. Yes. Billion. Picture a million-dollar home. Now picture one thousand of them. A billion.