When a black celebrity seems to disband the overall good of the people to tap dance for the entertainment of the white population, the black community jokes-but-kind-of-not-really about them no longer being invited to cookouts, family reunions, dinner, or anywhere else where we break and butter our cornbread. After working for the Trump administration and …
Author Archives: B. Leigh Howard
Brown paper bag test: The lack of foundation ranges and how cosmetics companies still perpetuate racism
I’ve never really had serious issues in finding my foundation shade. The worst that I’ve encountered is the makeup artist at MAC giving me a darker or warmer shade than my actual complexion. Apparently, I’m more of a neutral undertone than some artists are willing to accept, especially since I’m as fair as I am …
What’s in a name: ‘Nigga’ v. ‘Hotep’
“Nigga” is passed around like high-fives in today’s society. Hip hop has allowed for the term to become more mainsteam, and through musical waves it travels through multiple communities, cultures, and countries. However, the origin of the term still stings the oppressed people that it was made to remind of our alleged inferiority. Because of …
Families being separated is about all people of color
History has a dirty habit of repeating itself. Especially if we don’t learn from it and our mistakes. You’d pretty much have to be blind to any form of news to not know anything about the current immigration crisis that is plaguing the U.S. From the travel ban that was reinforced by Congress over the …
Whole foods and Starbucks: How to transform ‘gentrification’ into ‘community evolvement’
Whole Foods was the ultimate sign that Harlem had become a NEW Harlem. It showed outsiders that the residents were willing to conform and change, willing to assimilate into mass society. Something as simple as Whole Foods took away the identity, the individualism, the uniqueness of Harlem. To me, it signified the end of a …
#herSTORY: the femme noire 