The Souls of Black Girls

Now that my computer has fully recovered from it's run in with the cyber H1N1 virus, I'm back to my regular scheduled surfing. First stop Facebook, where one of my favorite bloggers, Nichelle of 55 Secret Street and Anovolista.com posted a story out of the UK about a Black woman/mother who traveled thousands of miles to Panama to undergo a risky surgery to change the color of her eyes from brown to blue. I guess I don't have to tell you how that story turned out, but if you're interested check out the link. Then there was the big Tyra Banks season premier. Black women everywhere were sitting in front of the television prepared to celebrate "real hair" only to discover that Tyra's definition of "real" was long, permed, fried and laid to the side. While I do commend her for taking the first step, I like Afrobella, assumed "real" meant "natural". Then there was the Monday's Oprah ( a rerun from 2008) that looked at the how women around the world define beauty. I was shocked to find that hundreds of thousands of Iranian women choose to get nose jobs to "fix" their round noses, not to be outdone by the women of Mauritania who force feed little skinny girls to fatten them up to make them more appealing to men. Although I don't agree with the method, it was refreshing to discover there's a place on earth where the standard of beauty is nothing like our euro-centric ideal. All of this talk about beauty got me to thinking about how African American girls (and women) self esteem and image are being influenced by images in the media. This question was also presented by director Daphne S. Valerius in her documentary The Souls of Black Girls. Join me on Thursday at 8:00am ET as we discuss the movie and our personal experiences as little Black girls growing up in America.

In case you missed it: Click here for a download of the full interview.

Cocoa Mode in the Eagles Nest airs every Thursday at 8:00am on XM 169 and on WOL-AM 1450 in Washington DC.

Is this racist?

There's been a lot of discussion about the images of Black women in the media, specifically in fashion magazines. Recently, Harpers Bazaar threw their hat in the ring by publishing a striking, albeit problematic, spread featuring Naomi Campbell photographed by Jean Paul Goude titled, "Wild Things". The spread is reported to be a throw back to Goude's work with Grace Jones in the 1980 also titled "Wild Things". On her blog, Sandra Rose, labeled the photos racist. She was particularly upset about the photo featuring Naomi playing double dutch with a group of monkeys while a white man looks on. While I can understand why that image bothers her (note to white folks - Black people do not appreciate being associated with monkeys in any way, shape or form, so please just stop it. ) I think the rest of the spread is beautiful. Could it be that some of us are just a little upset over the whole black people in the African jungle thing? I can understand why, for generations we've been conditioned to believe that Africa is is a vast waste land of nothingness and to be associated with it somehow proves that we're sub-par/human. Perhaps when we begin to re-evaluate our relationship with our ancestry (or for some, acknowledge our ancestry) we'll begin to take back our history find pride and power in our identity. In the meantime, I will celebrate the beauty of my blackness, just as Naomi is celebrating the beauty of her chocolate skin against the backdrop of what her ancestors valued. Home. I'd love to know what you think.

LOVE THIS!

Talk about super serving your niche! I think this is a fabulous idea - kudos to the ladies who are making things happen here and abroad. I wonder if this kind of thing would work in the states? Hmmm.

Vintage Ebony & Jet

Am I the only one who didn't know that you can browse vintage Ebony and Jet magazines using the Google books application? The issues date back to 1950 and you can read the entire magazine cover to cover. This is a great way to learn more about African-American (Negro) history from those who were there. In the early days both Ebony and Jet were the preferred sources for political, lifestyle and entertainment news. From what I've heard the reporters were top notch which was reflected in the writing. I plan on spending some time this weekend going through as many issues as I can. You can discover a piece of history on your own by clicking this link. Happy reading!

Is obesity a criminal offense?

A South Carolina court will decide if the mother of a 555lb young man should go to jail for allowing her child to gain so much weight. Jerri Gray has been charged with criminal neglect. She has said that she's done everything she can to help her son loose weight but he keeps finding ways to get food from other sources. Some are wondering if this is a case of neglect or a case of too little information. Anyone who's been in an inner city grocery store knows that the choices of healthy foods are far and few between, while there's no shortage of processed and high fat foods. I know first had how difficult it is to get inner city stores to stock healthy choices - never mind fresh produce. The last time I asked the manager of my local grocery store for a box of veggie burgers she looked at me like I'd asked her for a package of pig ears. No, I take that back, they actually HAD pigs ears, just not veggie burgers. Tune in this Thursday at 8:00am ET to Cocoa Mode in the Eagles Nest to share your thoughts. 1-866-801-8255.

This Week on Cocoa Mode

Actor Erik Todd Dellums is working to recognize August 29th (MJ's Birthday) as a National Day of Peace, Unity and Artistry. Tune in to my conversation with Erik this morning. In the meantime, join the movement by loging on to the Facebook page dedicated to the movement. Cocoa Mode in the Eagle's Nest. 8:00am ET on XM 169 and WOL-AM 1450

United We Serve

Michelle Obama's call to action. How will you serve your community/country? Tune in to Cocoa Mode tomorrow morning at 8:00am for more. Call in with your stories at 1-866-801-8255.