Positive African American Role Models
On the day designated as a day of remembrance for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., it's very coincidental that I had a conversation on Sunday with a friend of mine regarding positive Black role models in American society.
Late Sunday night, I was catching up with a friend and during our conversation, I referenced the Golden Globes. I had mentioned my thoughts on some of the awards (really thinking the Hollywood Foreign Press Association missed the mark on not recognizing Modern Family) and also my reactions regarding some of the people who were at the awards ceremony. I particularly mentioned how beautiful Vanessa Williams and Halle Berry were tonight, even though both of them have some age on them. This then transitioned into a conversation on strong Black female figures in media and film and how America seems to be void of a "new guard" of these strong Black women.
And I started to think. In movies and in television, the Black women who are (or have been) able to transcend Black America and become respected in mainstream culture are few and far between. When I dug deeper, I could not think of anyone under the age of 30 who would fit that bill at all. Names like Oprah, Vanessa Williams, Queen Latifah, Halle Berry, Phylicia Rashad, Jada Pinckett Smith surfaced in our conversation as women from our youth who were larger than life figures in movies and television. However, both of us were stumped when we couldn't think of who would or could carry on the legacy these women created for Black America.
Be mindful that our conversation barely touched on the male version of this argument. We brought up names like Denzel Washington and Terrence Howard, but much of our focus was devoted to the women. Our conversation did move to lamenting over the current state of "Black music" and how once upon a time artists would create songs with meaning, but that's for another post.
So I wonder... in your opinion, who are the new strong Black females in television and film? Are there any up and coming female stars at all?
Late Sunday night, I was catching up with a friend and during our conversation, I referenced the Golden Globes. I had mentioned my thoughts on some of the awards (really thinking the Hollywood Foreign Press Association missed the mark on not recognizing Modern Family) and also my reactions regarding some of the people who were at the awards ceremony. I particularly mentioned how beautiful Vanessa Williams and Halle Berry were tonight, even though both of them have some age on them. This then transitioned into a conversation on strong Black female figures in media and film and how America seems to be void of a "new guard" of these strong Black women.
And I started to think. In movies and in television, the Black women who are (or have been) able to transcend Black America and become respected in mainstream culture are few and far between. When I dug deeper, I could not think of anyone under the age of 30 who would fit that bill at all. Names like Oprah, Vanessa Williams, Queen Latifah, Halle Berry, Phylicia Rashad, Jada Pinckett Smith surfaced in our conversation as women from our youth who were larger than life figures in movies and television. However, both of us were stumped when we couldn't think of who would or could carry on the legacy these women created for Black America.
Be mindful that our conversation barely touched on the male version of this argument. We brought up names like Denzel Washington and Terrence Howard, but much of our focus was devoted to the women. Our conversation did move to lamenting over the current state of "Black music" and how once upon a time artists would create songs with meaning, but that's for another post.
So I wonder... in your opinion, who are the new strong Black females in television and film? Are there any up and coming female stars at all?
I think these new strong Black females are Raven, Keyshia Cole and others on http://necolebitchie.com/2010/10/18/the-5th-annual-black-girls-rock-awards/
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