Serena Williams was selected as Sports Illustrated’s Sportsperson of the Year, becoming the first black woman to win the award the first woman in more than 30 years. See her acceptance speech below.
Noma Dumezweni was cast as Hermonie in the upcoming stage play Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. According to Bust, The story is yet another Harry Potter adaptation or “the official eighth Potter story,” picking up where the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows epilogue leaves off.
Noma Dumezweni, by the way, is black and some Pot(ter)heads got their knickers in a bunch over this. When one disgruntled fan on Twitter wanted to know what Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling thought of this, Rowling tweeted: “Canon: brown eyes, frizzy hair and very clever. White skin was never specified. Rowling loves black Hermione.” BOOM!
Star Wars: The Force Awakens gave us girl geeks the female Luke Skywalker we’d always wanted.
Writing for The Guardian, Australian broadcaster Patricia Karvelas says it best declaring that “the character of Rey is a game changer for the little girls around the world who have been disgracefully ignored by the Star Wars empire for decades. She is the real deal – smart, formidable and loyal…Rey is a truly transformative character. Her journey from lonely orphan to kick ass pilot and fighter is effortless… She’s not passive, she’s not a bit player, she’s not defined by the permission of men. She is defined by what we are all hungry for – her power is derived by merit – she is the best fighter, the best pilot, the natural leader.”
May the feminist force be with you.
The Wiz Live wowed audiences and represented for EVERYBODY — African Americans, women, the gay community, and gender nonconforming folks. It was intersectionality on Broadway and I LOVED it.
Mattel released the Ava DuVernay Barbie and it sold out in, like, 15 minutes.
Misty Copeland made history as the first African-American female principal dancer for the American Ballet Theatre.
Lena Dunham and Jenni Konner launched Lenny, an email newsletter and website on feminism, style, health, politics, friendship, and more.
Carol’s Daughter and I Am That Girl partnered to launch the #BORNandMADE campaign to encourage women and girls everywhere to celebrate their beauty.
Magic Mike XXL happened. Before you start rolling your eyes, hear me out.
I admit I went to see this movie as a girls night out guilty pleasure. I mean, Channing Tatum — need I say more? But I left the movie pleasantly surprised by how feminist it was. As Jenee Osterheldt of The Kansas City Star writes: “Jada Pinkett Smith, Andie MacDowell and Amber Heard aren’t just flashes of femininity on the screen in between images of half-naked men. They are empowered…The men do not treat the women as a joke. They don’t dismiss the drag queens they dance with at a Jacksonville club as a cheap thrill. Pleasing the women pleases the men. Just because a woman is in a strip club does not make her a sexual pariah. Just as men enjoy themselves, so do women.”
Further more the older women in the film aren’t portrayed as “a pack of cougars, they are simply women.”
Necole Kane closed her celebrity gossip site NecoleBitchie.com to relaunch her online career with xoNecole.com, a new site designed to promote positive images of women of color by helping women share their personal stories, showcase their signature style, and speak their minds.
Being Mary Jane became one of my favorite shows on television.
I once regarded the BET drama as my “weekly dose of ratchet” but this past season rocked my world as the show delved into serious issues like suicide and continued to demonstrate that black female characters can and should be complex, multi-faceted, beautiful and flawed.
Viola Davis made history as the first black women to win an Emmy for Best Actress in a Drama and kept in real in her acceptance speech by declaring “The only thing that separates women of color from anyone else is opportunity.”
#BlackGirlMagic took over ALL THE MAGAZINES in September.
Some badass babes in my hometown of Birmingham launched a body positivity website called Beautiful Bodies of Birmingham.
Roxane Gay, author of Bad Feminist, gave a talk at TEDWomen that was EVERYTHING. See for yourself.
What made you a happy feminist this year?