What’s your Favorite Thing About Being a Black Woman?
What’s Your Favorite Thing About Being A Black Woman?
That was the question posed to the lovely vendors, patrons and organizers at the 24th annual Black Women’s Expo. A celebration of all things black womanhood, this expo featured scores of exhibitions, performances and seminars bringing a crowd of 20,000 plus to Chicago’s McCormick Place.
We all know that the Black woman’s buying power is dominant, but the expo wasn’t another capitalistic machine. The BWe invested in Black women in a number of ways, whether it was through health and wellness, beauty, hair or financial literacy services.
I got the chance to talk to some of the attendees and vendors and asked them what was their favorite thing about being a black woman. The answers were breathtakingly beautiful. One woman said that her favorite thing is that we love like God loves us. Another one said that her favorite thing is her strength and beauty and the versatility of our hair.
To answer my own question, I would say that my favorite thing about being a Black woman is how unique we all are. Black womanhood isn’t a monolith and we each shine so beautifully in our own different ways. We are trendsetters. We are strong — and not in the typical physical strength but because we persevere and stand 10 toes down. Even our failures and fuck ups are graceful. I love how human we are as Black women. We are authentic, there is literally nothing better than us.
The opportunity to cover the expo was nothing but good feels and reminded me just how powerful we are as Black women.
If you missed the expo in Chicago, have no worries: The Expo is touring in Atlanta and Dallas this year. Please check out www.theblackwomensexpo.com for more info.
