By Reza Clifton, #AmbitiousBlackFeminist
(Reza Rites / Venus Sings / Reza Wreckage)
March 2, 2013
PROVIDENCE, RI - It’s March, Women’s History Month, and I’m a woman. No, that’s a lame start.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but what happens when the beholder and purveyor of beauty is also a revolutionary of sorts? (Okay, maybe I’m on to something…)
Anyway, this post is to introduce an idea I had for a Women’s History Month blog series called Vanity for the Movement. It is, in part, an extension of a post I wrote recently on my #AmbitiousBlackFeminist Tumblr Blog, and it’s something I’ve been exploring for a while.
But what is the “it”?
For me personally, I know I am somewhat of an online writing pioneer - at least here, locally (RI) - but what I’ve often brought to online spaces are essays and article written with a touch more formality than what you normally see on blogs. Or, I’ve created certain spaces for specific topics, like music, women’s empowerment, Pan-Africanism and community organizing.
But if you’ve had a chance to spend interpersonal or face-to-face time with me, or if you’ve followed me on social media, then you know that there are still many more ideas, subjects, hobbies, interests, questions and movements that I like to talk about. And one that might surprise some are the topics of beauty and fashion.
I grew up reading magazines geared toward teen girls and young adult women (no need to promote them; you know what I mean), and often went through from front to cover - looking at the photos, reading the articles, and in general observing/learning the norms for Western cultures.
At the same time, I would pore through old photos of my mother in her teen and young adult years and admire her fabulous and ever-shifting fashion sense and stylings, and her proud embrace of her (our) culture through the afro she wore. In fact, I believe my mother might have the biggest afro I’ve ever seen - and this was after she’d begun her professional career, and let me assure you, it was bigger than Angela’s. I also enjoyed the school assignments that required me to review and revisit the collection of Ebony magazines my mom had accumulated, and the visits to my grandmother’s home, where my sister and I meticulously looked at and compared the “Jet Beauties” - one of very few activities that would keep her and I engaged in-doors during visits to her Greenville, South Carolina home.
To this day, I (okay, my mom on my behalf) still subscribe to Essence magazine, in part because of their coverage of things like the global HIV/AIDS epidemic, education and politics AND because of their beauty sections - which often include tips for those who rock natural hair-do’s and women with different body-types.
So yeah, sorry to disappoint those of you who thought I was beyond the Cosmos (okay, name-drop, ha!) or Vibe Vixens; I’m not. BUT that doesn’t mean that I’m NOT the Pan-African, ambitious Black feminist, intellectual revolutionary that you think I am. And for those of you I’ve talked to about nail-color designs or shoes in a store, coffee shop or beauty store, no this does NOT mean I waisted your time when we spoke for 15-20 minutes or held up the line to exchange ideas and tips.
AND NO, this series is NOT about apologizing or convincing someone about my ability to have a foot in both arenas. It’s about sharing a few things I’m wearing or info about how I’m rocking a style and juxtaposing them with details, tidbits and updates about what I believe, advocate for, and/or want to dismantle.
I hope you enjoy the information below about this photo and the styles you see here, and I invite you to comment, share, and submit your own blog post and story under the “Vanity for the Movement” banner.
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About the tights, shoes, and legs:
- TIGHTS: I truly believe in some of those cute philosophies about supporting local businesses, farmers and entrepreneurs. You know, things like “think global, act local.” That’s one of the reasons I like DJ'ing at Fertile Underground, which is a locally owned grocery store that works with and brings in products from local farmers and vendors, which besides supporting the local economy, helps the environment by cutting down on how much gas has to be burned to get the food to the store and your kitchen table. It’s also one of the reasons I like these tights. I picked them up downtown at Modern Love, which, alongside Queen of Hearts, is owned by local designer Karen Beebe. Karen is known for all kinds of fabulousness, and carrying these colored tights, for me, is just another reason why.
- SHOES: I picked up these shoes at Berk’s Store on Thayer Street on a day when I went in with my sister and her friend. I hadn’t even planned to go in, yet I walked out with three pairs of shoes. In my defense, there was a major sale happening. MAJOR; I walked out with three pair that day at thirty dollars more than what the regular retail price for one pair was! And these were beyond cute, as if they had been created in my dream world then delivered to the terrestrial world. See the thing is is that I generally like shoes that come in classic colors, i.e. black and brown, but that can get boring. On the other hand, there is something about buckles, studs, and metallic ornaments on classic-colored items that really pull me in. It’s like that, “is she a good girl or bad girl?” look. That “does she work in an office or does she lurk at night fighting criminals?” effect. That “let’s mingle” whether in a corporate or gothic setting option. And that T strap?! Why it’s a classic, elegant, immediately noteworthy kind of design.
- LEGS: I used to be ashamed of my legs. Kinda thought they were too big or too manly. And when looking down at them, as opposed to straight at them through a mirror - I was in pure horror at their size. Fast forward to today, and I kind of like ‘em! Even though you frequently hear “nice legs” directed at models with seemingly endlessly long legs, I’ve noticed that the pair they’re often referring to are mostly one one shape and without many curves. On the other hand, I’ve also observed the admiration of others, including myself, of women with “track legs,” “soccer legs” and “volleyball legs” - that is women with muscles and curves in their stems. And the thing is, as a former/HS athlete and onetime daily bike-rider, and someone who may not exercise daily, but who likes an intense workout, one day it clicked: WAIT, I have athletic legs which means…I HAVE NICE LEGS (something I’d heard before, but which I couldn’t hear at the time)!!!!
So, before I close out this first post in the series, let me just say a few more things about point 3 that I think might resonate with some of you or with someone you know: 1) The thing that might make you different or unique might be one of the things people admire about you. Give yourself a break and see what it’d be like to embrace them or at least not hate on it. For goodness sake, there is already enough negativity out there; limiting how much you direct at yourself is probably a good idea. 2) There is hope. I know that sounds silly, but imagine going from feeling despair/shame when looking down to feeling pretty dang good every time. Now, imagine feeling despair or hopelessness because of something that is or has happened. Now imagine this: it might change one day, and you might feel ready to tackle the issue or, in the wise words of Justin Timberlake, you might get your “sexy back.” So leave room for hope, okay?
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Reza Clifton is the Communications Coordinator of the Rhode Island Coalition Against Domestic Violence, where she oversees the agency’s publications, helps coordinate Domestic Violence Awareness Month outreach and promotions, and engages in other public awareness activities to promote the Coalition’s efforts to end domestic violence.
Reza is also an award-winning writer, producer, digital storyteller and cultural navigator. Since 2007, she has been recognized for multimedia projects that appear on her flagship blog, RezaRitesRi.com; for written work and direction as health editor for She Shines, a regional women’s magazine; and for leadership as a young professional and community organizer in Providence, Rhode Island. In 2011, two separate magazines named Reza “Most Musical” and a “Trender” due to her work bringing diverse styles of music, poetry and other mediums of art to the community. In 2012 she organized a bilingual poetry festival in which a group of bilingual poets and performers “in residence” performed at schools, cafes, and other community venues.
To follow the “confessions” of Reza Rites, an #AmbitiousBlackFeminist, visit her new blog, www.ambitiousblackfeminist.tumblr.com, or visit www.venussings.com where she blogs about music. Find her on Facebook and Twitter @rezaclif, or hear her monthly on radio, on WRIU (Voices of Women), and weekly online on Brown Student and Community Radio (Sonic Watermelons).
disastrid
