Happy Friday, fam! Check out what we are reading, watching, listening to, looking at, looking out for, celebrating and remembering this week.
READ:
Tressie McMillan Cottom highlights the life and careers of powerhouse sisters Venus and Serena Williams in this dope interview and spread for Harper’s Bazaar
A black boy love story
Candice Marie Benbow musing on motherhood—and while you are over there, check out her new book Red Lip Theology: For Church Girls Who’ve Considered Tithing to the Beauty Supply Store When Sunday Morning Isn’t Enough
Black women and college debt
How UPN Ushered in a Golden Decade of Black TV—and Then Was Merged out of Existence
The Superbowl half show from Sunday had us in our feels—good, bad, and ambivalent—which we think is well reflected in this brief article: Hip-hop Entertained the Masses at the Halftime Show, but at What Cost?
We’re excited to read this interview with Min Jin Lee in the New Yorker
WATCH
Iconic duo Salt ‘n Pepa tease new music in this interview
LISTEN
Literacy Partners is hosting a virtual public reading of Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye on February 23-24, featuring some of your faves. Register for free online: https://bit.ly/3Hydwo7
LOOK
Ms. Magazine has launched the Harriet Tubman Bicentennial Project in honor of what would have been her 200th birthday. Check out the interactive Tubman 200 site, which includes a chronological progression of important dates in her life, and the ongoing essay series that will run through mid-March and was launched with this introduction by Janell Hobson.
IN MEMORIAM
We lost a giant this week. Here are a few beautiful remembrances of Valerie Boyd by Pearl Cleage and Tina McElroy Ansa. Boyd is widely known for her biography of Zora Neale Hurston. To read more about Boyd’s muse, check out a new collection of Hurston’s unpublished nonfiction essays You Don’t Know Us Negroes.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY
Today is the birth date of two brilliant black women thinkers, writers and icons whose work continues to shape ours, Toni Morrison (2/18/1931-8/5/2019) and Audre Lorde (2/18/1934-11/17/1992). [Shout out to @blackfeministbooks for the reminder]. Read you a little of either/both to celebrate the eternal gift of their words and wisdom.
BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR
Coming up TOMORROW at 1PM ET. Register for the 2022 Ready to Run® campaign training series “Launching Your Campaign,” which will provide a focused overview of the key elements of a campaign plan for women interested in running for office.
On March 1 at 1PM, ET, tune in for the launch of the forthcoming #JustTech platform, featuring a live demo and Q&A session. Register here to learn more: https://ssrc.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_r8UsYJZXTjy7QMU9ubQoKQ
CONGRATULATIONS
CF Robin Boylorn has been named the inaugural Holle Endowed Chair in Communication Arts at the University of Alabama. Read the full announcement here.