This is the fourth interview in a sequence of interviews with diverse media makers who grasp firm to speak with us their motivations, work out and hopes for the media they end. Read former interviews with Nezua, Nuala, and Espie.
This interview is long overdue! I asked Aiesha to do a virtual interview with me back in January of 2010 and plus life happened and stacks of thrilling opportunities came up for both of us. Hip that time Aiesha asked me to join the clarifying hire of The Black Child Purpose, an feel she began, which stemmed from the documentary greatest of the awfully name she directed and bent. So, I grasp to be honest, I'm totally devotee and in support of not only Aiesha's work, but of The Black Child Purpose as well. I reflection now was the best time to speak part of her interview with Raise readers (little I've mentioned her work in advance) and speak ways you can get multifaceted with the media she is creating!
I can't commit to memory somewhere I met Aiesha Turman first, but I'm unquestionable it was on the Internets having the status of the first time we met in 3D I was bringing art merchandise to her home in Brooklyn in an casual to untainted up my own room to move into a new one. Aiesha identifies as a "Black, involved class, woman, hetero, over 30 mama." She's incredible, the class of incredible that makes you feel seen, that character is exceedingly witnessing your life, and that is a endowment not abundant species grasp yet to act for.
Aiesha is the founder of Oversized Hussy Media, The Black Child Purpose, Okra Stew, and The Adventures of Pecan Tan. She shares that she " had the sustain name Oversized Hussy for a few sparkle. It's evolved from a noticeably personal blog to what it is now afterward I fully got the daring to go for it. My real thing motivation was to just grasp a room on the web."
When did you end Oversized Hussy Media? In the role of were your motivations?
On the name Oversized Hussy: "hussy" was my maternal grandmother's favorite/only guaranty word. Regardless of your age, if you pissed Nana off and you were a female, you were unusual extensively a hussy. Now, in arrears looking up the etymology of the word, I improper out "hussy" was minor from the German for housewife and began thinking about how patriarchy (fussily the drawn supremacist division) twists, labels and misconstrues doesn't matter what that does not fit into its in a straight line limited power mode. Hussy became to be free as a unruly, lascivious, weird and sexually promiscuous heathen. Secret language can be used to both steal and nourish or shabby and kick in the teeth. Any woman who goes against the grit and/or lives by her own rules, not the ones abut upon her, has been labeled whatever thing or long forgotten ("bitch" and "whore" come to mind) which seeks to psychiatrist who she is in the world. As far as the "profuse" goes, I've forever loved comics, so I effectiveness as well be a hero!
Tell us about The Black Child Project?
The Black Child Purpose (BGP) is both a documentary greatest and a non-profit feel. I grasp worked with young people in New York for over a decade, with the former few sparkle being heavy-duty generally to high academic students. It was in this work, I began to crash into the stories of young women, abundant of whom were outwardly great, but were remedy with a lot of issues from homelessness to sexual assault and depression. I was capably sufficient to be trusted sufficient by them that they would talk to me. Their lives reminded me of mine as a teen-aged girl. I was pleasantly great academically, but in imitation of it came to remedy with issues, abundant of which were regular with my peers, I turned new for fear of mortification or disconcerting my parents. The non-profit is an carbuncle of the greatest and my confidence to allowance young women close to their fullest dominance.
BGP.org: The Black Child Purpose provides tools, guidance and support for girls to leading themselves physically, socially, stormily and culturally for the errands of young manhood. We meet the issues that most-impact girls straight all inside the context of being a Black female in an ever-changing world. We employ copy, the arts, just and group work, not working with a establish of interdisciplinary modes to help hearten drive, severe thinking and leadership skills.
BGP.com: The Black Child Purpose is a documentary greatest which asks unusual extensively one question: who are you? Of focus that question morphed into long forgotten, notes questions, but that poles apart question deception at the end of the greatest.
In a people somewhere Black women and girls are either valued for their devout actions which terrazzo them of any long forgotten character attribute except that of martyr/mammy, or demonized and used as the fall gal to explain sideways all that is incorrect with the Black community and society-at-large, it is fundamental to crash into and see Black girls speak their truths. Neat media continues to grasp a problem with possible, multi-faceted portrayals of Black women and girls, and for that matter, all females of blemish. It is our vision that the greatest adds to the pondering about Black women and girls straddling the sway and that it will quantity to a paradigm wave in how they are seen by others and how they see themselves.
The greatest is heavy-duty to the holding area of Shannon Braithwaite. I met Shannon in imitation of she was in 10th gain, in fact, I hired her as an intern for a youth program I harmonized in Brooklyn and had hoped that she would be one of the young women I interviewed.
Shannon was bright, unrestrained, intrepid, a great singer and strongly frequent to her friends and family. She was in style by her peers and the adults she interacted with. In the role of I loved maximum about Shannon was her severe thinking skills. You could forever see that she was thinking and she'd put on view questions to me out of the mauve. She was exceedingly a model young woman.
This all ended on a late September day's end in 2008, just in arrears Shannon's 16th birthday, she was brusquely murdered by her cousin Tiana Golden-brown, just 15 sparkle old herself.
I've sat in on part of the trial, seen the prick that tear Shannon's overeat and stabbed her over 30 times, puncturing her end. It was having the status of of Shannon's contract that Tiana was staying with her and her mom in the first place. A distraught young woman, Tiana had few long forgotten options.
Being the greatest is heavy-duty to Shannon, on the rear, it's moreover heavy-duty to Tiana; all the young women and girls who grasp been kick in the teeth, busted and grasp unexplored/unhealed anger, pest and puff.
The greatest, workshop, seminars, etc. are for all of our girls, heavy-duty to allowance them become the self-actualized people they value to be.
Section with us the significance of launch in your media. How is language fundamental to the work and projects you are creating?
I define "Black" as species who are of African ramp approximately the Diaspora and who say yes their "Blackness" by having some type of social or cultural connection or just thoughtful of/to their internal "Blackness". This doesn't mean that you are taking part in dashikis or celebrating Kwanzaa (period I grasp no problem with that), but it is recognizing and embracing the fact that you are part of the Diaspora, regardless if you live on the continent of Africa, the Americas, Europe, Asia...someplace.
I define "girl" as simple a female human whether physically or socially. Being your sex is held to quantity gender, I caution that donate are species who grasp been assigned the sex "male" but in all actually are girls. The lines are unfocused, but if you symbol yourself a girl, so do I.
In the role of is goodbye on now with The Black Child Project?
(Collaborated retort by Aiesha and Bianca) Finally we are fundraising for the educational arm of BGP. We grasp the trailer of the documentary give or take a few for people to watch online, are touring with the documentary presentation it at diverse places all over the US (let me caution if you want to elephant hide the documentary at your academic or community), and involved with community organizations focusing on aptness and wellness. Our PSA for Manufacture AIDS Day called "Dodge, Don't Carry out" featuring some of the young women from the documentary discussing the significance of testing, education, and valuing ourselves as Black women, has been very well conventional.
We had bunch in December 2010 of speakers discussing how HIV/AIDS impacts our community and had one speaker from Craze Heals, Kim, a young Black woman untrained with HIV kid about her experience growing up positive and her relationships now as a married woman and father to a one year-old son. She was connected by Carmen Mendoza, Pass Kings Area 2011, who is using her support to deal with dropping the speckle getting experienced for HIV.
We've just collaborated with Ghylian Air of Community Yoga Innovation to end Community Holistic Child, a twice-monthly workshop for young women somewhere they can learn yoga, tai-chi and long forgotten movement and meditation practices/techniques. In on top, the participants learn spring up ways to end teas, locations and body scrubs to learn how to compel care of themselves inside and out. We are meeting on Saturday's in Harlem at Cooperative spirit Holistic and the sessions are FREE! Tickets need be correct period and are on a first-come, first-serve reason. Our be with session is Saturday Hike 12th and 3:30pm. Clap in the environs of to superiority your brand.
Fundraising pains on our Kickstarter beep are under way! You can see the abundant clique of our work and the fundamental need that we are seeking to stifle. Better Black girls need to tell their stories and we are seeking to try out the treasury to test that can come into view. Retain donating whatever you can, equivalent if it is your time, rupture this interview, or involved to understand a presentation of the documentary!
You may road Aiesha on Chirrup @SuperHussy and The Black Child Purpose @blackgirlproj. Inhabit tuned for part two coming anon somewhere we deal with mamahood, her long forgotten projects and media, and her suggestions for texts, training, and objects for aspiring media makers.
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